Ophthalmic staff’s protest hits services in Amritsar Civil Hospital

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, December 28

On the strike call given by the Punjab Ophthalmic Officers’ Association, doctors held a protest at the Civil Hospital here on Tuesday.

Barring emergency, all other health services were affected at the hospital. Besides, the strike of postgraduate students-cum-junior resident doctors of Government Medical College (GMC) was already on in the hospital. Patients were the inconvenienced lot who had to return disappointed.

Office-bearers of the Punjab Ophthalmic Officers’ Association said despite holding a meeting with Deputy Chief Minister-cum-Health Minister Om Prakash Soni and the Principal Secretary, Health, in Chandigarh on December 14, their accepted demands remained unmet.

Their demands include creation of promotion channel, implementation of actual duty rest, accept graduation educational qualification and filling vacancies.

Jaswinderpal Singh, member secretary of the association, said despite the recommendations of the Director (Health) to create a promotion channel, it was not implemented. Even the High Court had in 2014 directed the department and the government that no employee should retire without promotion. Despite that, no action had been taken by the government regarding the promotion and many employees retired without promotion.

“Every cadre has a promotion channel but it is great injustice to us that ophthalmic officers retire without any promotion despite working hard and diligently during their service,” he said.

Rakesh Kumar, convener of the association, stated that the department was running “Chief Minister Cataract Free Punjab Campaign” in which ophthalmic officers were playing a leading role. But the cataract-free campaign would be boycotted by them until the legitimate demands of the association are implemented in writing.