North, east MCD Doctors and teachers intensify strike

MCD Strike: A Look At The Delhi Streets & Delhi Govt’s Response

Staff at other hospitals — Rajan Babu Institute Of Pulmonary Medicine & Tuberculosis, Maharishi Valmiki Infectious Diseases Hospital, Swami Dayanand Hospital and Girdhari Lal Maternity Hospital — are also on strike over non-payment of salaries for the past three months.

On Monday, the corridors normally brimming with patients were empty and the wards locked. Hindu Rao Hospital, a nodal hospital under the MCD with a footfall of approximately 6,000 patients a day (as per officials), was shut for patients. Doctors on strike took turns to man emergency services.

The hospital’s medical superintendent has written to superintendents of other hospitals to allow treatment of patients that are being referred to them.

Dr Dheeraj Agarwal from the hospital said since the crisis began a year ago, all medical supplies are being purchased locally. “The hospital is understaffed and those employed work like daily wagers,” he said. He added that some equipment at the hospital is so old that they are not functional anymore.

Swami Dayanand Hospital, under the East MCD, sees about 4,000 patients a day. It too closed its doors beginning Monday. “No one is getting salaries and essential drugs have been in shortage for over a year. Patients are buying these drugs by themselves,” said Dr Aashish Jain, President of the Resident Doctor’s Association.

The North and East civic bodies have incomes far lesser than the their counterpart in the South but run six hospitals between themselves.

Angry teachers slam MCD, state, Centre

Meanwhile, protesting the non-payment of salaries for over three months, the Municipal Corporation Teacher’s Association (MCTA) began their protest outside the East corporation headquarters in Vishwas Nagar-Shahdara Monday.

The MCTA declared that their strike would not end till the following demands are met — all outstanding salaries be given to teachers who have not been paid, salaries be paid on the last working day of the month (in accordance with employees of the central and state governments), the three MCDs be unified to ensure that no more discrepancies in payment of salaries, and an investigation by the Comptroller and Auditor General into the funds that the state claims to have allocated to the MCDs.

Starting with the EDMC Primary School in Krishna Nagar, members of the MCTA patrolled schools and ensured that all students unaware of the strike were sent home.

Declaring their intention to continue to halt classes at MCD schools, Vice President MCTA Vibha Singh, said, “We did not want it to come to this, especially since the students are just a month away from their final exams. However, the complete lack of response from authorities has left us with no choice but to adopt dire measures.”

Tariq Khan, media secretary of the MCTA, said, “We have not received salaries for over three months, arrears have been pending for four years and so is compensation for medical expenses. How are we to tirelessly teach and care for children when we are not being given our most basic right?”

The shutting down of schools could have an adverse impact on the students’ access to mid-day meals. Despite this, several parents, themselves employees of the MCD, have extended their support to the MCTA.