Honorarium of technical staff in medical colleges, hospitals hiked

The state government has substantially enhanced the honorarium of the technical staff working in the health sector to strengthen healthcare services.

A government spokesperson said here today that keeping in view the large vacancies of the technical staff, the state government had decided to enhance their honorarium substantially. The honorarium of operating theatre assistants (OTAs) had been enhanced by Rs 7,180 per month (from Rs 17,820 to Rs 25,000) and of radiographers and X-ray technicians from Rs 13,100 to Rs 25,000 per month.

He said that there were 382 sanctioned posts of operating theatre assistant and 226 of these were vacant, while 129 of the 282 sanctioned posts of radiographer and X-ray technician were vacant. “The low honorarium has been a major deterrent for technical professionals to join the government sector, leading to a shortage of critical staff in hospitals,” he added.

The spokesperson said that in the coming times, this decision would help the Health Department to fill posts lying vacant for years together. He added that the technical staff working in hospitals and medical colleges played a vital role in providing diagnostic services and were the backbone of the health care delivery system.

He said at present there were only a few seats of paramedical staff in the government sector and the state government had decided to increase the seats in technician courses in the medical colleges in Shimla and Kangra.