Salary pending since June: Civil Hosp ambulance drivers allege

Drivers working at the Civil Hospital in Sector 10 have been struggling to make ends meet as their salaries have not been disbursed by the health department since June

Drivers working at the Civil Hospital in Sector 10 have been struggling to make ends meet as their salaries have not been disbursed by the health department since June. Drivers said they have been forced to take loans or borrow money to pay for basic expenses such as rent and food.

HT spoke to several drivers at the hospital. Currently, there are 34 drivers at the premises. According to them, they received their last salary in May.

HT spoke to several drivers at the hospital. Currently, there are 34 drivers at the premises. According to them, they received their last salary in May.

All the drivers are employed on a contract basis and have been working at the hospital for at least 3 years. The ambulance services comes under the National Health Mission, with drivers earning an average salary of around ₹25,000 per month.

An ambulance driver, requesting anonymity, said, “I am from Bhiwani and have a family of four there. I live here alone for work. Two months without salary is a big shock. I pay ₹7,000 as rent and have to borrow money from friends or lenders to cover it.”

Drivers said delayed salaries are not a new issue and payments often lack a fixed disbursement date.

The bills for ambulance repairs submitted to the district medical office have also been pending for several months.

Another ambulance driver, who hails from Rewari, said, “My bills worth ₹25,000 have been pending for almost a year. I have visited the health department office multiple times, but they don’t clear our bills.”

The drivers also approached chief medical officer (CMO) Dr Lokveer Singh several times over the issue, but no action had been taken.

The CMO said, “The letter for salary disbursement was signed on Thursday. Delay persists because the power lies with the state department and it takes time from their end to disburse the salaries.”

He said delays are expected to reduce from September, when the authority to clear salaries of contractual ambulance drivers will be transferred to district-wise CMO’s

On the pending ambulance repair bills, he said, “The bills submitted are often very old and it takes the department some time to tally all the figures and send them to the state for reimbursement.”