Health workers protest for salaries in Bathinda

Multi-purpose health workers say not paid for six months, even as they have deputed to trace ad identify covid-19 NRI suspects

Multi-purpose health workers (female) protested outside the civil hospital on Thursday, claiming that they had not been paid salary for six months, even as they have been tasked with tracing covid-19 suspects.

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Multi-Purpose Health Workers Union state president Harjinder Kaur said, “Over 40 of us, who work with the department of health and family welfare on contract have been going without salary for six months. We have not even been regularised since our recruitment over nine years ago.”

She added, “We have been deployed to trace NRIs who arrived in Punjab, according to a list provided to us and report anyone found symptomatic of covid-19. We are also tracing those who arrived in the district from other districts.”

She claimed that the state government had failed to provide them PPEs and they had managed to arrange masks and sanitisers on their own expense. “For field work too, we are managing fuel for vehicles on our own,” she added.

Bathinda civil surgeon Dr Amrik Singh said orders to release the salaries of these workers had been received and it would be paid in a day or two.