SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Oct 19: More than 50 programmes of National Health Mission (NHM) in the state have almost nosedived as the indefinite strike of contractual officers and staff against the dismissal of State Programme Manager (SPM) entered its 9th day on Monday.
The reports reaching the state headquarters said that following the indefinite strike, implementation of child health, maternal health, tribal health, NCEP, family planning, routine immunization, PC PNDT, IDSP, NIDDCP, IDSP, RNTCP and movement of medical mobile units has been hampered.
Contractual NHM officers and staff have been on an indefinite strike since October 11 against the arbitrary sacking of State Programme Manager Jwala Prasad by the NHM Managing Director.
The Jharkhand Health and Employees Welfare Association (JHEWA), the frontal organization of agitating NHM officers and employees, has also tagged six other demands with its stir.
Health Minister Banna Gupta refused to comment on the agitation of these contractual NHM officers and staff when he was contacted on Monday morning.
JHEWA leaders alleged that NHM MD Bhuvnesh Prasad Singh exploits the contractual officers and employees of NHM. Tomorrow (Tuesday) is a gazetted holiday in the state but he has called a review meeting of Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme (PMNDP), National Mobile Medical unit (NMMU), National Iodine Deficiency Control Programme (NIDCP) and National Programme on Palliative Care (NPPC) just to torture them.
However, a senior officer of the health department clarified that the review meeting was scheduled during Durga Puja’s working day but on the request of employees, it was deferred.
“The NHM MD does not care about the suffering of patients and people caused due to the strike, otherwise he would have called for talks directly. But we have decided to fight against the exploitation of contractual officers and employees,” said the leaders of the agitation.
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