Multipurpose health workers up the ante

Tribune News Service

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Bathinda, June 25

Irked over the nonchalant attitude of the state government towards their demands, members of the Unemployed Multipurpose Health Workers (Male) Union, Punjab, today staged a protest and burnt an effigy of the state government to express their displeasure with the government.

Addressing the members, union leaders said after a long fight for their rights, the multipurpose health workers had succeeded in getting the previous state government to advertise for 1,263 vacancies. Following a written examination, Baba Farid University, Faridkot, had even commenced the procedure of verification of the documents of the shortlisted candidates in December 2016, he added.

“Despite the fact that the Congress party had promised every family would get a job, it didn’t proceed with the recruitment process. When we announced that a state-level protest would be organised on April 23, the state government released a list of 919 candidates but again delayed the recruitment process. Meanwhile, some candidates filed a case in the High Court which further delayed the completion of the recruitment process as the state government didn’t fight the case properly,” the union leaders said.

They demanded that the state government should fight the case properly and recruit the shortlisted 919 candidates. They also demanded that the remaining vacant seats must also be filled by the government without any further delay.

Accusing the state governments of ignoring the health sector, the protesters said, “On the one hand, the state government claims that providing health care facilities to everyone is a priority and on the other, when it comes to recruiting doctors and filling other vacant posts in the hospital and health centres, the government drags its feet.”

They also threatened that in case the state government continues to delay the recruitment of the health workers, they would be left with no option but to intensify their stir and stage massive rallies across the state.