Ludhiana, June 18
Employees of the Health Department organised a protest rally at the Civil Surgeon’s office here to express their resentment against the abolition of certain posts and other anti-employee policies of the Health Directorate.
Addressing the rally, speakers, including Mr Sukhwinder Singh, president, Punjab Health Department Subordinate Offices Clerical Association condemned the government move to abolish two posts of administrative officers for clerical staff at Government Medical Colleges in Patiala and Faridkot. He not only demanded the restoration of these two posts but also called for the creation of a similar post in Government Medical College at Amritsar.
Other demands made at the rally included the upgradation of one of the post of the Superintendents at district headquarters to Class I, the recruitment of clerical staff in new districts as per the norms and creation of a post of one stenographer at all district headquarters.
In a related development, the coordination committee of para-medical and health employees, which met here today under the presidentship of Mr Amarjit Singh Pandher, resolved the strengthen the trade union movement so that the Health Department could be saved from the affects of privatisation and other demands like the revision of grades and allowances, could be achieved.
Mr Pandher announced that a convention would be held here on June 26 to discuss organisational matters and to draw up further action programme to press the demands. The cadres, he added, were being mobilised for the proposed state-level dharna at the Health Directorate at Chandigarh on June 29.
Meanwhile, the SC/ST and BC Employees Front, Punjab, has charged the Punjab Government with adopting evasive and delaying tactics in accepting the constitutional demands of the employees, belonging to the Scheduled Castes, tribes and backward classes.
In a joint statement here today, Mr Charan Singh Halwara, convener and Mr Saroop Singh Talwandi, district president of the front, said the body had launched a week-long relay fast at Matka Chowk in Chandigarh from June 15 to focus on pending demands like the implementation of 85th constitutional amendment, giving effect to recommendations of Mandal Commission, granting due promotions, filling backlog of vacant posts, providing reservation in the private sector, timely disbursement of books and scholarships to students and rollback of hike in the fee structure in technical institutions.
