Vets stage dharna at dist polyclinic

Disappointed over the allegedly inconsiderate attitude of the state government towards the demand of veterinary officers to restore pay parity with medical officers, the vets under the ‘Joint Action Committee for Pay Parity’ (JAC), staged a dharna at District Veterinary Polyclinic in Gill.

All the treatment, elective surgeries and testing were suspended for the day. Although, emergency and vetero-legal cases were attended to.

Veterinary and senior veterinary officers, assistant and deputy directors, and retired animal husbandry officers joined the sit-in.

Addressing the gathering, the speakers strongly condemned the government for employing delaying tactics due to which the whole cadre was deeply anguished and demanded their over four-decade-old parity with medicos be restored immediately.

They reminded the government had earlier scheduled the meeting of the JAC with Punjab Finance Minister on September 17 but it did not materialise. It was then scheduled with a ministers’ sub committee on September 27 but was again postponed to October 22.

Dr Gurcharan Singh, convener, JAC; Dr Harman Singh, co-convener, and Dr Sandeep Bhullar, district president, lambasted the incumbent government for repeatedly postponing the meetings and for not sticking to its commitments.