Punjab Govt docs to strike work on June 25 over allowance cut

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 22

Government doctors, including veterinary, medical, dental, Ayurvedic, rural medical officers and medical teachers, today formed a joint front and announced to go on a strike on June 25.

The government doctors are protesting against the pay commission’s recommendation on decreasing and de-linking the non-practice allowance (NPA) from basic pay.

In Bathinda, doctors staged a protest against the Sixth Pay Commission being implemented by the government in which the NPA has allegedly been reduced.

All doctors of the Bathinda Civil Hospital staged a protest outside the Civil Surgeon’s office and raised slogans against the Punjab Government and Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal. During this, the doctors kept OPD services closed from noon to 2 pm, due to which patients had to face problems.

The doctors warned that on Wednesday also they would stage a protest by keeping OPD services closed for two hours.

They alleged the Punjab Government had done injustice to doctors who stood firm in the Covid crisis. In the pay commission, NPA was reduced from 25 to 20 per cent. Along with this, it was recommended to de-link the NPAs from the basic pay. This would reduce the salary of doctors, they claimed.