As government announces financial incentives for COVID-19 warriors, HDF employees feel ‘neglected’, demand regularisation

Sameer Ahmad

Anantnag: As the government announced financial incentives for ‘COVID-19 warriors’ for their tireless efforts, HDF employees feel ‘neglected’ for not being included in the list.

The employees said that the government must have also announced incentives for HDF frontline health workers, “who are fighting Covid-19 in Jammu and Kashmir since the outbreak of virus.

As per employees, dozens of health workers are working on hospital development fund (HDF) at different hospitals including government medical colleges, and are fighting with the deadly virus either without salaries or for Rs 1500, 2500 or 3000.

The aggrieved employees rued that “at least 2100 health workers are engaged in different hospitals in Jammu and Kashmir on hospital development fund, which usually remain unpaid for several months, even when maximum of the employees are performing their duties at Covid-19 OPD and isolations according to their roasters.”

“Despite working round the clock, delivering results during COVID19 pandemic situations, doing night shifts and performing regular duties, unfortunately we were ignored by the government from the incentives, which the Government had announced for Covid-19 warriors,” Bashir Ahmad Khan, General secretary HDF employees Union Jammu and Kashmir said.

He said that they are risking their lives in the deadly pandemic, and the govt is paying them wages, “as low as 1500 per month.”

Khan further said that “this is injustice with us, as government has always ignored us despite working round the clock.”

“We are at least 2100 employees working in different hospitals in union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, out of which 51 are working in Anantnag GMC, As per the daily roster, at least six of these health workers are performing their duty at Covid-19 isolation ward here in GMC Anantnag on daily basis,” he told Arising State.

The employees said that “like other doctors and Paramedics, we too are on the forefront to handle the cases of Covid-19, but we fail to understand why we have been ignored.”

“For the rest of the health workers, government has even announced financial incentives, but we were excluded, even though we are fighting the deadly virus without wages,” they said.

The employees urged the J-K administration, particularly Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to look into the matter and regularize the HDF employees.

Recently, the Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha had approved special financial incentives for COVID-19 Warriors of Health and Medical Education Department of the union territory.

As per a statement, the decision will benefit more than 17,000 Corona warriors including resident doctors, medical officers, paramedical/nursing staff, drivers and class IV employees.

The incentive will be Rs 10,000 per month for resident doctors, PGs and Medical Officers, Rs 7,000 per month for nursing and paramedical staff, and Rs 5,000 per month for drivers, sweepers and attendants. The order reads.

Meanwhile ,Arising State tried to maintain contact with  financial commissioner health and Medical Education Atal Dullo, however ,none of our calls were answered.