by Babra Wani
SRINAGAR: Resident doctors pursuing their post-graduation from Government Medical College (GMC) Srinagar and Sher-I-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) have not received their stipend for the past three months. They work in the OPD and IPD of the chain of hospitals in Srinagar and the operations of these hospitals are hugely dependent on them.
According to the postgraduate residents, the stipend payments have remained unpaid since August. Some have claimed that while senior staff members like senior residents and consultants receive their salaries regularly, postgraduate residents are yet to receive their stipends.
These young doctors are facing crippling issues in managing their lives in Srinagar. “Most of us are not from the city; we come from other areas and rely on our stipend for rent and daily expenses,” one resident doctor, speaking anonymously, said. “Some of our colleagues haven’t received their stipend for four months.”
The doctors also pointed out their heavy workloads and long hours, stating, “Some of us work without any days off.”
Concerns have arisen among postgraduate students about their ability to continue their duties as the stipend delay has extended beyond 90 days. They fear that if the issue remains unresolved, it could lead to drastic actions that affect patient care services, as postgraduate doctors play a vital role in tertiary care hospitals.
As per the norms that the government made public earlier, the post-graduate doctors are paid a stipend of Rs 60,000, a month.
When discussing the matter with clerical staff, the residents were informed that the bill had been generated on October 6 and was pending at the treasury level. Attempts to contact the Chief Accounts Officer (CAO) yielded no satisfying response, and an application has been filed with the principal’s office.
Residents have reported similar issues at SKIMS Soura and JVC Bemina, where postgraduate residents have not received stipends for the past two months.
Postgraduate residents from SKIMS Soura have endured a stipend delay for two months, causing significant difficulties. They have communicated their concerns to authorities, but there has been no response. Rumours suggest that the stipend may not be paid for another three months.
Officials from the accounts office have assured that the stipend will be processed in the coming days, citing previous funding shortages as the cause of the delay.
Government Medical College Srinagar offers over 170 postgraduate seats annually across clinical and para-clinical departments in Government Medical Colleges and associated hospitals. Half of these seats are reserved for applicants from Jammu and Kashmir, with the remaining 50 per cent allocated to the all-India quota. The GMC Srinagar runs a major chain of hospitals in Srinagar. These include SMHS Hospital, Srinagar, Bone and Joint Hospital Srinagar, Chest Disease Hospital Srinagar, IMHANS, Srinagar and Kashmir’s women-exclusive Lala Ded Hospital in Srinagar. Apart from the 1200-bed SKIMS, it also runs a medical college and a hospital in Bemina.
(Neither of the two photographs used in this news report are linked to the details of the report and are merely representational.)
