Ahmedabad, July 22 (TIWN) Approximately 40,000 doctors of private hospitals here struck work on Friday putting off 30,000 surgeries in protest against a new directive to shift all ICUs on the ground floor.

As part of the stir called by the Gujarat branch of the Indian Medical Association, OPDs and emergency services will also remain shut. However, the treatment of inpatients will not be impacted. The bone of contention between the doctors and the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation's fire department is a notice issued by the latter to private hospitals asking them to implement some new rules as per the Gujarat High Court's oral order. The court has asked the hospitals to shift the ICUs on the ground floor within seven days.