DODA – The National Health Mission Employees (NHM) working in Health Department on Sunday demanded immediate formulation of job policy for all the employees working under the scheme.
Addressing a press conference in Doda, the Sr Leader and Former District President , Faizan A Tramboo informed the media that employees under NHM, RBSK, RNTCP, JKSACS and other schemes under NHM like IDSP, NCD and others are working since last more than 15 years in J&K in different capacities included that of Doctors, Paramedics and Management Staff.
Tramboo said that the NHM Employees in the past has put all the demands before the Govts so many times for redressal and has also hit the roads score of times in order to press for their genuine demands which include formulation of job security and pay hike.
“The then Government constituted a committee of three brass officers in 2017 and 2018 to discuss and examine the issues like regularization policy in which one of the committee in 2017 already forwarded a draft proposal before the Govt through Finance Department for approval”, said a Sr NHM Leader Dr Hamid Parray.
The NHM Employees during the press conference said that the employees working under different NHM schemes are doing commendable job in the overall health care delivery system across J&K especially in the remotest and in accessible areas since decades, adding that it is most heartbreaking to see that yet no mechanism is in place to regularize our services, despite the fact NHM Employees constitute as being backbone of the health department after giving valuable years of their prime youth in the service of people under NHM.
Another Sr Leader, Dr Nasir Masood Indrabi informed that in the recent past, the Manipur Govt has taken a initiative to regularize all NHM Employees against regular posts, so demanded that on the analogy of that initiative, it was high time for the LG Administration to rise to the occasion and give recognition to them by regularization of our services.
The NHM Employees said that denial of the genuine demands of NHM Employees since long and especially regularization, amounts to usurping their basic rights and right to equal wages for equal work, guaranteed under the constitution of India.
Other than the demand of regularization, the NHM Employees raised the issues like implementation of equal pay for equal work, enhancement of their salaries particularly among paramedics, social security benefits and transfer policy for non local employees.
They however informed that NHM Employees are working tirelessly day and night during the COVID-19 pandemic since two years in longer shifts and with utmost dedication, but its very unfortunate that their genuine demands have yet not been considered by the authorities. It is the high time for the Govt to address the genuine issues of NHM Employees who are confronting from long run, the employees added.
The NHM Employees hoped that the LG Administration would take immediate action to concede to the demands of NHM Employees & bring their services at par with other regular employees. They retierated that employees working under NHM since last 15 years without any job policy see their future very uncertain and are confronted with severe psychological stress.
The NHM Employees have urged the LG and other sr health bureaucrates of the UT to come upto the expectations of the employees and regularize their services immediately, in a phased manner, if not in one go besides redress other issues raised, so that the NHM Employee may not suffer anymore & live the life of dignity and equality.
Those present in the press conference includes Mohd Ashfaq, Surinder Kumar, Ashok Shan and Ajay Manhas.
