MBBS interns seek hike in stipend

Karam Prakash

Tribune News Service

Patiala, April 19

Despite working for long hours, the disgruntled MBBS interns of Government Rajindra Hospital on Thursday demanded their stipend to be on the lines of — equal work equal pay. The MBBS interns did show their resentment, over the stipend given to them, by terming it a ‘meagre amount’ and not matching with the work they do. The interns, a basic unit of all tertiary health care, have written to the Principal Secretary, Medical Education and Research, Punjab, over the issue. They said the stipend, Rs 9,000 per month, was an insult to their profession.

Doctors said they were being paid even below the Class IV contractual employees. In fact, after a huge uproar by interns in 2012, the stipend was hiked from Rs 4,500 to Rs 9,000. But, since then there has been no hike in the stipend.

They also alleged that there was a huge difference in the amount, 

being paid throughout the country, to the MBBS interns. Therefore, medicos want their monthly stipend to be increased from Rs 9,000 to at least Rs 17,900 as already been recommended by the Ministry of Family Health and Welfare.

In fact, the internship is a mandatory part of the medical course and 

each candidate has to work in different departments at a hospital attached to the institute concerned. Therefore, each medical student, whether pursuing MBBS, Homoeopathy or Ayurveda, has to go through the internship.

The interns are assigned all kinds of works such as preparing patient’s chart, dressing the wounds, giving medicine to patients, preparing patients for operation. Sometimes, they have to work during the day and at night, but payment remains the same.

On an average, medicos have to work over 10 hours a day during the routine internship postings and they often work round-the-clock.

Their responsibilities include reporting to the senior doctor and coordinating with paramedical staff and even explaining to patients’ attendants the status of their health.

Interestingly, the Punjab Labour Commission on April 5, 2017, has mentioned that under the Minimum Wages Act, minimum wages of a contractual worker is Rs 49.53 per hour, Rs 395.71 per day and 10,277.52 per month.

“A medical officer working on a 24-hour duty, getting a fixed number of casual leaves, is being paid just around 10,000. Is it fair?,” said one of the interns.

“We have been asking for the hike for a long time but they have ignored it so far. Stipend of the medical interns in poorer states is even more than us. It is Rs 20,000 in Kerala, Rs 18,000 in Delhi Rs 15,000 in Haryana and Rs 20,000 in Karnataka ,” said Dimple Mittal, president, Junior Doctor Association.

They also demanded to increase the stipend by 5 per cent annually.