Medical teachers to protest on March 21 against retirement age push

Mumbai: The Municipal Medical Teachers Association (MMTA) has decided to hold a protest at Azad Maidan on March 21, followed by a hunger strike, to voice their objections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) recent move to increase their retirement age from 62 to 64

Mumbai: The Municipal Medical Teachers Association (MMTA) has decided to hold a protest at Azad Maidan on March 21, followed by a hunger strike, to voice their objections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) recent move to increase their retirement age from 62 to 64.

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Earlier this month, the MMTA had met with BMC commissioner Iqbal Chahal (who cleared the proposal on February 28) urging him to re-examine the decision, which caused unrest among medical teachers in BMC-run colleges. The MMTA maintains that the move will affect the promotion of at least 1,000 individuals.

MMTA said the commissioner assured them that he would give their request some thought and provide them with a response within a week.

“It has been more than two weeks and we have not heard anything from the commissioner. We have therefore decided to go ahead with our protest starting from March 21 and hunger strike on rotation,” said Dr Ravindra Deokar, secretary, MMTA.

The first retirement age extension, from 58 to 62, happened in 2008 and the proposal to further extend it to 64 was first put forward in 2018.

MMTA spokespersons have also threatened a mass resignation notice if the BMC does not roll back its decision by March 30.

“We will give mass resignation with one-month prior notice. We will go on an indefinite hunger strike from April 1,” said Dr Deokar. He added that MMTA is also looking for legal options.

MMTA members said there are many medical teachers, especially lecturers, who are on contracts and have been working for years without any benefits, like casual leave.

One of the MMTA members said, “BMC has not filled the vacant posts and is continuing with the contractual posts for medical teachers where they are not getting promotions or facilities. Many have been working for more than 8-9 years. We are surprised that the commissioner has cleared the age extension without thinking about these contractual lectures and vacant posts as well. The system is stagnant. This decision will make it worse.”