Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 30: Health employees of Jammu province under the banner of Jammu Kashmir Medical Employees Federation (JKMEF) today observed complete 3-hours pen down strike to support the struggle of Female Multipurpose Health Workers (FMPHWs), who are on strike for last 16 days demanding permanent settlement of Salary Head 2211 and release of pending salaries.
Almost all the cadres of Health employees including Ministerial Staff, Pharmacists, X- Ray technicians, Lab technicians, and Ophthalmic technicians, Dental technicians, OT technicians, Driver and Cleaners (SHTO), basic Health employees, Class IV employees, and even employees working under NHM Scheme participated in the strike.
All the services except emergency were paralyzed at various Health institutions from Lakhanpur to Banihal including major institutions like District Hospitals, Sub-District Hospitals, and Community Health Centers, Government Hospitals Gandhi Nagar and Sarwal, LRPU Gangyal and other health institutions across the division.
Out Patient Departments (OPDs) remained shut in most of the hospitals as counters of OPD registration slips remained closed while most of the patients were seen waiting outside these counters being unaware of the strike of the health employees.
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Planned surgeries were cancelled and most of the patients continued to be turned away from the hospitals. However, emergency services were running smoothly in all the hospitals. Even though the patients were inconvenienced, some of them came out in support of the female multipurpose health workers for releasing of their salaries.
Addressing the protesting female multipurpose health workers here at Madam Shashi Bala Memorial Park, Sushil Sudan, president, JKMEF, said that if the issues of female multipurpose health workers were not settled soon, JKMEF will intensify their strike.
All the Health employees of various cadres in one voice gave their word to render their support in any programme organized by JKMEF in future for the redressal of all the problems of female multipurpose health workers working under 2211 Head.
Prominent among others who addressed the protesting female workers were Vinod Sharma (secretary general, JKMEF), Neelam Kumari (FMPHW Welfare Association), Jarnail Choudhary and Manjeet Singh.
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