LAHORE, Feb 8: The Health Department has terminated 143 doctors for their absence from their place of duty.

The notification of termination of 89 doctors was issued on Thursday and of 54 doctors on Friday.

The department had issued notices to 250 doctors for their long absence from their duties.

A majority of them have proceeded abroad on years-long leaves and did not rejoin the work despite several warnings and notices to them.

A spokesman for the department said that under a laid down departmental process, doctors were given chances to defend themselves.

He made it clear that the said terminations had nothing to do with doctors’ hunger strike.

It was a routine departmental action against doctors who violated the laid down rules and regulations of the health department, he said.