Patiala: Nursing staff at Punjab’s govt medical colleges on Wednesday began an indefinite strike over restoration of Rs 4,600 grade pay, defying the state govt’s move to invoke the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) a day earlier.The strike affected non-emergency nursing services at government medical colleges in Patiala, Amritsar and Mohali, though unions said emergency care was being managed through skeletal staff.Under the banner of the United Nurses Association (UNA), hundreds of nurses gathered at hospital gates, raising slogans and holding placards despite the govt’s late-night order invoking ESMA.Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nursing Union, Patiala, president Arti Bali said the protest had been announced well in advance. “We had already declared that we would go on strike from March 26, but the govt invoked ESMA on March 25 night. Even then, we decided to go ahead as our demands remain unresolved,” she said.UNA state president Ramanjit Singh Gill said the agitation was the culmination of a long-running dispute over grade pay. He alleged that the nursing staff’s grade pay had been reduced from Rs 4,600 to Rs 2,800 in 2021, resulting in a significant salary gap for new recruits.Union representatives claimed the reduction had affected entry-level nursing staff the most, and said they would continue the agitation until the govt formally restored the higher grade pay.The association also alleged that nursing staff in neighbouring Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh were receiving higher grade pay, and termed the Punjab decision discriminatory.The strike has set up a confrontation between the nursing unions and the state govt, with the latter warning of action under ESMA if essential services are disrupted.MSID:: 129828379 413 |
