Ranchi: Over 2,000 workers associated with the 108 ambulance service have announced an indefinite statewide strike from Oct 21 after talks with health minister Irfan Ansari failed to resolve their long-pending demands.The workers staged a daylong sit-in outside National Health Mission (NHM) office on Friday as part of their phased agitation. They are seeking payment of pending wages, benefits under labour laws and the operation of ambulances in every district by the respective civil surgeons.Neeraj Tiwari, president of Jharkhand Pradesh Ambulance Karmachari Sangh, said the health department had agreed to only one of their three demands — reinstatement of around 20 employees suspended for raising the issues.“No consensus was reached on the other two demands. We are therefore compelled to begin an indefinite strike and ground all ambulances across the state from Oct 21,” Tiwari said.He claimed that workers had not received their salaries since July and had received no concrete assurance from the health minister.Ansari, however, said the 20 employees had already been reinstated. On the wage issue, he said the outsourcing agency claimed that salaries had been paid and that he had directed department officials to verify the matter.The minister also ruled out the workers’ demand for handing over ambulance operations to civil surgeons. “The department will soon engage a new outsourcing agency to manage the ambulances in the state,” he said.Meanwhile, a proposed indefinite strike by doctors from Oct 21 was called off after the health department agreed to their demands on Friday.Jharkhand State Health Services Association secretary Mrityunjay Singh said the department had accepted demands including time-bound Dynamic Assured Career Progression (DACP), amendments to the Clinical Establishments Act and enactment of a Medical Protection Act.Doctors had announced the strike to press for career progression, changes to regulations governing private and govt healthcare establishments, and legal protection for medical personnel amid rising instances of attacks on healthcare workers.
