Dhanbad, Jan. 13: The non-gazetted employees’ strike has left dozens of dog bite victims in the lurch.

Vishnu Prasad Roy, who was bitten by a stray on January 3, reached a hospital here to get his third dose of vaccine today. But all he could do was wait.

“I don’t know to what extent the order will help the patients and whether the hospital will be able to make some arrangements in a jiffy. But one thing that I know for sure is many like me will have to do without medication till they (officials) find a solution,” said an anxious Roy.

R.N. Rajak, whose daughter Guria was also bitten by a dog last month ago, had taken a day off from work for getting his daughter administered the third dose of vaccine, but found the hospital closed.

Some patients went to nursing homes for medication, but could not afford the same.

“If you want the vaccine in a nursing home, it will cost you about Rs 2,500,” said Raman Ram, the father of 10-year-old Vicky, who was mauled by a dog recently.

“Though majority of those who returned can not easily procure money to take the injection from the open market but life is precious so they may borrow for saving the life” said Ram.Indra Deo Yadav, who had come to the hospital for the second dose of vaccine said: “Only God knows when I will get the injection.”

The indefinite strike called by the Non-gazetted Employees’ Association took a toll on the medication of hundreds of patients suffering from dog bites in the first day of the strike at Sadar hospital here.

Most patients were from the Tundi and Topchanchi blocks. About 50 of them went to the district collectorate and apprised the deputy commissioner Ajay Kumar Singh of their plight.

This prompted Singh to order the hospital officials to make an alternative arrangements.

Contacted, district secretary Non-gazetted Employees’ Association Nawal Kishor Prasad Singh described the strike as successful and said:

“I am sorry for the inconvenience faced by patients. But we could do little regarding this. The government is to be blamed as we had informed it about the strike over a month ago.”