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Resume work, else face action, HC tells PGI striking workers
Punjab and Haryana high court permits institute to take all coercive steps in terms of agreement between it and the contractor to put an end to the strike that has been going on for a week
The Punjab and Haryana high court on Wednesday directed striking workers of PGIMER to resume work immediately or face action.
“Be that as it may (to the argument that it was due to service dispute), the pendency of any service dispute cannot become cause for an employee to abstain from work in a hospital, which is an essential service,” the bench of chief justice Sheel Nagu and justice Anil Kshetarpal observed, adding that the UT administration and the PGIMER were free to take all permissible coercive steps against the employees in question.
It further added that the institute was free to take all coercive steps in terms of the agreement between it and the contractor.
The court was hearing a petition from PGIMER against the strike. The PGIMER had submitted that the hospital attendants, sanitation and house-keeping workers, who were outsourced employees, were abstaining from work since October 10.
Due to this, the entire administration and functioning of the institute had been disrupted. The hygiene and sanitation of the institute-hospital had been put to peril, it was submitted.
On the other hand, UT administration had told the court that penal provisions could be invoked as per the provisions of East Punjab Essential Services Maintenance Act, 1947, to deal with the strike.
Taking note of the submissions, the court stayed the strike call made on September 16, based on which work has been suspended and asked the workers to immediately resume the work.
Dr Vipin Koushal, PGI’s official spokesperson in a statement, said, “PGIMER authorities have appealed to the workers to comply and join duty, and have also notified the service providers accordingly. PGIMER will implement the high court’s order in its letter and spirit in entirety.”
Workers remain defiant
Despite the court’s order, outsourced workers, whose strike completed seven days on Wednesday, remained defiant, declaring that they were prepared to go to jail but will not end the strike under these conditions.
Rajesh Chauhan, president of the Hospital Attendants’ Union, said, “We are not ready to call off the strike. We are prepared to go to jail, but will not call off the strike without getting our arrears.”
OPD services continue to be hit
Due to a gazetted holiday on the occasion of Valmiki Jayanti, there will be half day in the OPDs of the institute on Thursday.
But amid the ongoing strike by hospital attendants, supported by other contractual workers, including sanitary and kitchen staff, OPD services will continue to be curtailed.
OPD registrations will be limited to follow-up patients only between 8 am and 10 am, with new patient registrations and online appointments temporarily suspended. Elective admissions and surgeries have been postponed, and patients are being informed of these changes in advance.
Emergency, trauma, and ICU services will remain operational as usual.
On Wednesday, OPDs managed a total of 5,442 patients, the emergency OPD admitted 160 new cases and the Trauma OPD saw 14 new patients.
Additionally, 16 procedures were performed in the Cath Lab, there were four deliveries and 140 patients received daycare chemotherapy. In addition, 25 surgeries were also performed. The emergency department treated 309 patients, while the Advanced Trauma Center (ATC) catered to 227 patients.
Strike causes tremendous strain on sanitation
The sanitation crisis at PGIMER intensified on Wednesday when striking workers obstructed authorities’ attempts to get the piling waste cleared.
The administration had brought in daily wagers to uphold sanitation, but the striking outsourced workers harassed them, forcing them to flee. In response, PGIMER lodged a complaint with the UT police and the deputy commissioner, seeking action.
A senior police official confirmed that a complaint had been received and an FIR under Section 223 (disobedience to orders issued by public servants) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita had already been lodged against the union leader earlier this week at the Sector-11 police station.
Amid the strike by outsourced workers, the institute is under tremendous pressure regarding sanitation. The emergency and trauma areas, despite volunteers and regular employees involved in the maintenance of hygiene, witnessed substantial solid waste, with segregation of solid and biomedical waste also being compromised.
Apart from general insanitation, dirty linen is not being sorted, patient areas remain unattended and waste is not being cleared, impacting hygiene standards.
The hospital attendants initiated the strike on October 10, demanding the release of pending arrears totaling approximately ₹30 crore, covering the period from November 2018 to April 2024. Currently, around 1,600 outsourced attendants work at PGIMER, contracted through a service provider.
On October 11, the strike gained momentum when other contractual workers, including sanitary and kitchen staff, joined in solidarity. Despite multiple discussions, no consensus has been reached, adversely affecting patient services across the institute. More than 3,000 outsourced workers remain on strike near Kairon Block till the filing of this report.
Resident doctors end hunger strike
The hospital’s Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), which had announced a relay hunger strike and suspension of elective OPDs from October 15 in support of West Bengal residents protesting for justice for the rape-murder victim and improved workplace safety, decided to resume work on Wednesday.
Association president Dr Hariharan A emphasised their commitment to minimising public inconvenience during this critical period. While temporarily halting their protest, the residents will monitor the actions of other RDAs, especially in Delhi.
