Community Health Officers’ strike hits medical services in Mohali
Mohali, July 1
Community Health Officers (CHOs) at 72 Health and Wellness Centres across the district remained offline during their strike to press for long-standing demands today. The CHOs attended to the patients who walked in at the centres but did not make an online entry to register them.
Community Health Officers’ grievances
- They are paid Rs 5,000 less than their counterparts in other states.
- The loyalty bonus, which was to be given on completion of three and five years of service, has been stopped.
- Owing to the new incentive performance scheme, the workload has increased.
Residents in rural areas were bereft of preventive healthcare facilities as check-ups for diabetes, BP and other ailments are done by the CHOs in villages. Apart from this, 12 health services are provided by the CHOs at the centres in rural areas of Punjab.
Each Health and Wellness Centre caters to five villages in the vicinity. There are 62 such centres in Mohali district.
A delegation of the association, under the chairmanship of Gurvinder Singh, submitted a memorandum to Dera Bassi MLA Kuljit Singh Randhawa.
The protesting employees have claimed that they are paid Rs 5,000 less than their counterparts in other states. “The loyalty bonus, which was to be given on completion of three and five years of service has also been stopped. Owing to the new incentive performance scheme, the workload has increased and we are suffering financially and mentally,” said Deepsikha, general secretary of the association.
