NHM employees hold protest in support of demands

NHM employees during a protest near Exhibition Ground in Jammu. -Excelsior/Rakesh
NHM employees during a protest near Exhibition Ground in Jammu. -Excelsior/Rakesh

Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 19 : All JK National Health Mission (NHM) Employees’ Association today held a massive protest in support of their demands at Exhibition Ground, here near Press Club.
Hundreds of NHM employees from various parts of Jammu region participated in the demonstration. Carrying placards in their hands, the workers raised slogans against the Government for ignoring their demands.
While addressing the protesting NHM employees, Rohi Seth, provincial president of the association, said, “The Mission was started by Government of India, Ministry of Health throughout the Country and in J&K it was implemented in the year 2007 and about 20,000 employees and 25000 ASHA workers are working under this Mission in J&K and providing health care services in rural and urban areas in health department in J&K but a meager salary is being paid to them, as their services have not been regularized”.
Seth demanded that those NHM employees who have completed 5 years of service be regularized and rest of the employees be given equal salary at par with permanent employees in reference to Supreme Court’s verdict i.e. equal pay for equal work till their regularization.
Senior vice president of the association, Dr Hamid Parray, demanded that minimum 10% increment be given to all the NHM staff yearly, transfer policy be framed for NHM employees, all the NHM employees be provided facilities like provident fund, maternity leave, baby care leave, medical leave, earned leave, medical insurance and life insurance.
Parray further said that the steps must be taken to ensure job security for NHM employees and the practice of taking affidavits annually from them, which is illegal and unjustified, must be stopped at the earliest. Besides, whenever regularization policy is framed or ‘equal pay equal work’ policy is implemented, the management staff must be considered for higher posts equivalent to their qualification and job profile and should not be treated as clerical cadre.
He further demanded that ISM doctors be given salary at par with their counterpart MBBS doctors and fixed salary be given to all ASHA workers.

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