Srinagar
Doctors Association Kashmir on Wednesday expressed hope that government will address the issue of gross pay anomalies meted to state doctors in an upcoming cabinet meeting on May 11, 2018.
The spokesman said that entry-level medical officers were in pay band 3 till fifth pay commission and then relegated to pay band 2 in 6th pay commission. In rest of other states of India, entry-level medical officers still are in band 3. At that time statewide doctors protested and objected the said movement of government and with the result the then honourable finance minister gave us special duty allowances of 800 per month without any inflating factor, said president DAK DrSuhail Naik.
He said it was unfortunate that same risk allowances were not paid to consultant doctors who are inherently working as pay band, 3 officials. The irony is that how pay band 3 was going to save consultant doctors from the risk of acquiring infections when all of them are working in similar conditions and on same patient population.
Therefore special duty allowance or risk allowances are one of gross pay anomaly and should be rectified. Furthermore taking current inflation’s and seventh pay Commission into consideration, this special duty allowance or risk allowance must be increased to atleast5000 per month with incorporated annual inflation factor henceforth. And all entry-level medical officers should be kept in pay matrix which is corresponding to the pay band 3, the spokesman added.
Meanwhile, hospitals function 24 ×7 and it is established fact that doctors don’t avail any kind of holidays or vacations. Consultant doctors are put on daily or alternate night call duties with no post night off. Medical officers run hospitals round the clock irrespective of holidays, festivals, turmoils. The duty hours of consultants range from 65 to 75 hours per week and that of medical officers from 55 to 65 hours. In case of all paramedics, this extra duty is compensated by paying them 2 and 1/2 day salary. But in case of doctors, no such extra salary is paid which otherwise is a fundamental right of all doctors.
We are therefore appealing to honourable chief minister, Mehbooba Mufti and our New Health Minister, Hon’ble Devinder Kumar Manyal to kindly personally intervene and address the long pending genuine demands of doctors. It is pertinent to mention that Doctors Association Kashmir enjoys the support of Jammu and Kashmir Doctors cordination committee which is an amalgam of all doctor associations of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.
