SUHAIL RATHER
Bandipora, 23 Jan: The employees working under the National Health Mission (NHM) continued their strike for the tenth consecutive day on Wednesday and staged a protest in Bandipora district in favour of their demands.
The health services across the district were affected by the strike. The striking employees are demanding regularization of their services. The employees are demanding regularisation of their services apart from immediate fulfilment of the commitment made to them by then health Minister in January 2018. Employees said that the government had promised us certain social security benefits last year but till date nothing has moved, we have no option to hit roads, said Tafazul Yousuf an employee.
We want regularisation of our services as our performance has remained excellent. "The J&K NHM Employees Association had decided to hold protest rallies across the state today to press for our genuine demands pending from past more than six years.
The protesting employees threatened of going on an indefinite strike if their demands were not fulfilled at the earliest.
The strike has badly affected the healthcare in Bandipora as the SDH hospital is solely dependent on NHM employees due to the dearth of regular staff in the hospital.
Meanwhile, sources at several hospitals across the district including primary health centres (PHCs), community health centres (CHCs) and district hospital said that the work was hit by the strike.
They said the patients were facing inconvenience while getting treatment at the hospitals, adding that at most of the health centres only a single doctor was to see a huge rush of patients.
Apart from formation of regularization policy, the employees were demanding immediate implementation of Supreme Court directions of equal pay for equal work on the analogy of SRO-384, benefit of 7th Pay Commission on Haryana pattern, full leave package, removal of pay disparity, full medical cover and according to of EPF benefits for pending employees.
They warned the government of severe agitation if their demands were not met. They later marched towards the office of the Chief Medical Officer from SDH Bandipora and submitted a memorandum.
Chief Medical officer (CMO) Bandipora Dr Bilkees Mir said, “Patient care has been affected due to the NHM employees strike".
