94 Telangana govt doctors sacked over year-long absence from duties

Hyderabad: In a major crackdown on absenteeism in the healthcare sector, the Director of Medical Education (DME) of Telangana has issued formal termination orders for 94 government doctors.

Absent for more than a year

The action targets faculty members across various State medical institutions who have been absent from their duties without authorisation for more than one year.

The decision follows a series of show-cause notices issued in May 2025, which provided the doctors 15 days to explain their absence. According to the DME, Dr A Narendra Kumar, the explanations received from some were found unsatisfactory, while many others failed to respond entirely.

“The services of these faculties are herewith terminated from the date of their unauthorised absence,” stated the official order.

Medical departments

The termination affects assistant and associate professors across several departments, including General Medicine, Pediatrics, Surgery and Anesthesiology, at premier institutions such as Osmania Medical College and Gandhi Medical College.

The government has instructed hospital heads to communicate these orders to the individuals’ permanent addresses and ensure the vacancies are cleared to allow for fresh recruitment.

Why were these doctors terminated?

The mass termination is the result of the strict enforcement of State service rules aimed at addressing chronic staffing shortages in government hospitals.

1. Prolonged Unauthorised Absence: Under the Telangana Leave Rules of 1933 and Fundamental Rule 18, any government employee absent without authorisation for more than one year is deemed to have resigned from service.

Many of those terminated had been ‘untraceable’ or missing for years, with some cases dating back to 2013.

2. ‘Dual’ Employment: Investigations revealed that some faculty members were drawing government salaries while simultaneously working in private hospitals or other institutions.

3. Impact on Healthcare Services: The absence of these doctors, particularly in high-dependency departments like Neurology and Cardiology, caused significant hardships for patient care and disrupted medical education for students.

4. Strict New Policies: In January 2026, the Telangana government amended service rules to mandate automatic suspension or termination for prolonged absenteeism to ensure that ‘crucial seats’ are not blocked by truant staff.

5. Failure to Respond: While a committee was formed to allow doctors to rejoin, 94 individuals either failed to appear for hearings or provided justifications that the department deemed ‘rejected and examined’.