NHM staff to be pruned, workers threaten strike

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 2

The National Health Mission (NHM) employees from across Haryana have threatened to go on strike on August 9 and 10 to protest against staff rationalisation.

The NHM Employees’ Association has submitted a notice regarding the strike to the Mission Director and also demanded regularisation of their services.

Hundreds of health workers fear losing their jobs as the National Health Mission (NHM) has begun the process to rationalise its staff by at least 20 per cent.

Recently, the Mission Director of the NHM in Haryana Rajiv Rattan had sought details of the staff to be rationalised from officers of the various health programmes.

Surender Gautam, president of the Association, said over 12,000 persons were employed under the NHM. Many of them had been in the service for past 18 to 20 years. He said, “We were appointed after the posts were duly advertised in newspapers. Interviews were held by the selection committee. Over the years, our members have worked hard to improve the social indicators like the Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR), the Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) and gender ratio. The present government’s election manifesto promised to regularise the services of contractual employees, but now, the government wants to take away our jobs on the pretext of rationalisation.”

Surender Gautam said in the talks held on May 31, the authorities concerned had promised the pay the salaries by 10th of every month and not to remove any worker.

Atul Kumar, general secretary of the association, alleged the NHM employees were made to work for more than 48 hours a week and not paid for months against the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) mandate.

He said their request for a meeting with Health Minister Anil Vij and the ACS (Health) had been declined.