Contractual healthcare employees have been at the forefront of the online and offline protest, claiming that some of them are being “removed from service.”
Workers hired during the second wave complain that the government is mistreating them “after they risked their lives at one of the most difficult times for the country.”
Many employees are now venting their frustrations on social media networks. Workers claim that since the number of Covid patients has reduced, many of those who were hired during the peak of the second Covid wave to treat and care for Covid patients have been “removed from service.”
Many of these workers demonstrated against the government’s decision earlier this month. The All India Central Council of Trade Unions’ Delhi unit led the demonstration (AICCTU).
Many others have come out in support of the medical health professionals, also known as Covid fighters, to seek “justice” for the workers. One of them stated on Twitter,
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) recently notified Rajya Sabha that over 50,000 positions in various primary health care sectors across the country are now unfilled. Following this discovery, many have questioned the government, asking why, with so many open seats, so many health workers are being laid off.
In response to a question from Communist Party of India MP Binoy Viswam, Minister of State for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar shared data from the Rural Health Statistics and stated that there are currently 51,061 open positions for doctors, nurses, health workers, and other health professionals across all states and union territories. According to the ministry, the doctor-to-citizen population ratio is 1:834, while the nurse-to-citizen ratio is 1.96:1,000. The minister also stated that there are 13,01,319 allopathic doctors, 2.89 lakh dentists, and 13 lakh allied and healthcare professionals registered in India.
