Our Staff Reporter MULTAN - The entire paramedic fraternity went on strike against non-issuance of service structure as the paramedical staff of different hospitals abandoned work, staged protests and brought out rallies here on Thursday. The protesting paramedics established protest camps outside hospitals, demanding Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to honour May 12, 2011 promise and issue the service structure forthwith. If the structure is not notified even yet, the paramedics of entire province would encircle civil secretariat in Lahore after locking up their respective hospitals on September 7, declared the speakers while addressing a protest meeting. The patients, most of them from far flung areas of South Punjab, found themselves stranded at local hospitals as the paramedical staffers of Nishtar Hospital, Multan Institute of Cardiology and Children Complex observed complete strike. Resultantly, all wards of the above mentioned hospitals except emergency ones faced a complete shut down. However, the strike was partial at some places like Nishtar Hospital where a split between two groups of paramedics benefited the poor patients. The members of one group performed their duties as a result of which the emergency and outdoor wards of Nishtar Hospital remained functional while the other group observed strike, causing a shut down at operations theatres. The defiant paramedics staged a rally and marched between Nishtar Gate and Prime Minister House. Holding placards and banners inscribed with their demands, the marchers shouted slogans against Punjab government. The speakers warned on this occasion that the paramedics would commit suicides if they were denied their rights. They added that the government would be responsible for law and order situation. The participants of the rally were led by senior vice chairman of the association AD Kanwal, Bashir Joya, Khalid Saed Qalandar, Iqbal Tahir, Muhammad Ameen, Rana Tufail and others.