The junior doctors on strike at Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) have decided to call off their agitation by Thursday midnight after health principal secretary R.K. Mahajan assured to set up a committee to probe Monday's lathicharge on the medics.

Mahajan also ordered the release of the four medics who were arrested during the Monday's incident.

Mahajan has recommended principal secretary, home, Amir Subhani to set up a probe committee that will go into the causes that led to the lathicharge. The deadlock was resolved following a meeting held on Thursday between Mahajan and the junior doctors. The medics also had a meeting with PMCH principal S.N. Sinha separately during the day.

PMCH Junior Doctors' Association president Vinay Kumar said: "In the meeting with Mahajan we put forth our demands which included release of our four colleagues. We told the principal secretary that till the demands are met we are not going to budge from our stand. Apart from the release of our colleagues, our other demands were withdrawal of FIRs against us, action against the police officers responsible for the lathicharge and a judicial inquiry into the incident before suspending the guilty police officers."

Vinay added: "We are thankful that the government released our colleagues. On withdrawal of FIRs, action against the erring police officers and a judicial probe sought by us, the principal secretary said once the probe is complete suitable action would be taken. We will review the situation after 15 days and if no action is taken, we will chalk out our future action."

The strike, however, severely affected the emergency services at PMCH the entire Thursday. "The emergency ward, which on a normal day witnesses five to six operations daily, has virtually come to a standstill as not a single operation was conducted at the emergency ward on Thursday. The outdoor patient department, however, functioned normally with senior doctors coming to the rescue of the patients," said senior doctor Subhash Chandra Jha.

The PMCH junior doctors went on strike on Tuesday midnight protesting against Monday's police lathicharge during an admission counselling session for postgraduate students by the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination. The session turned violent when a few postgraduate students, who are also junior doctors, alleged that general category students where accommodated in the reserved category postgraduate seats. The police had then resorted to lathicharge to control the situation.