The staff members including doctors, nurses, paramedical and clerical staff of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Poly Clinic and National Institute of Rehabilitative Medicine (NIRM) have planned to stage a massive rally and sit-in today (Tuesday) at Parade Avenue (D-Chowk), which will be a part of their ongoing strike against the non-implementation of the Basic Pay Scale (BPS) system.
“As concerned authorities have failed to pay a heed to our demands against implementation of Health Personnel Pay Scale (HPS) announced in National Assembly, while over two weeks of protests and sit-in by the staff of health institutions went unheard, the Joint Action Committee (JAC) has decided to stage a massive rally and sit-in on Tuesday,” member JAC Raja Ilyas said while talking to Pakistan Today.
Ilyas said the staff members of Capital Development Authority (CDA) and people belonging to minorities would also taken on board to stage a protest-cum-sit-in. “Chaudhry Yasin of CDA and Nobel Peace Prize nominee and former federal minister Julius Salik will lead the protest as over 80 percent of employees of these health institutions are against the implementation of new Health Personnel Pay Scale (HPS) package,” Ilyas maintained.
He claimed that over 5,000 employees were expected to participate in the protest to press their demands. The JAC member, said it was ironic that on the assurance of the government officials, including federal minister Syed Khursheed Shah, Senator Nayyer Bukhari and Cabinet Secretary Nargis Sethi, that they will do every effort not to implement Health Personnel Pay Scale (HPS), but the bill had been tabled in National Assembly. “The non-medical staff along with doctors, and nurses also rejected the new HPS and preferred to remain in the old service structure of BPS.
“They are demanding the service structure for promotion to higher grade for all non-medical gazetted and non-gazetted staff as approved for paramedics and nurses; existing pay scales with all other rights under Civil Servants Act 1972, instead of proposed HPS; payment of salary out of voted budget (recurring budget allocation) through AGPR as already adopted; all existing facilities, perks and privileges as admissible from time to time; and grant of monthly Hospital (health) Risk Allowance equivalent to running basic pay,” Raja Ilyas further said.
He said till Monday (January 23) no one from concerned authorities had taken notice of two weeks strike while the patients coming from far-flung areas continued to suffer. “It seems, government is not willing to solve this issue and wants to privatise these hospitals but the staff would not let them do so,” he said.
Ilyas added that over 1800 Poly Clinic employees were in favour of the BPS system, while118 favoured the HPS system. He said the personnel would not quit fighting for their legal rights. Ilyas said further the PIMS and Polyclinic hospitals’ executive directors are also favouring the PBS system.
Raja Ilyas said according to the law, the Cabinet Division could not pass any ordinance without consulting relevant organisations such as the Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) or Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), but all these bodies had been bypassed “to serve some vested interests.”
Earlier on Monday, over 3000 medical and non-medical professionals of PIMS, Poly Clinic and NIRM gathered at Argentina Park, near Melody Market, for a protest demonstration and chanted slogans in favour of their demands. On the occasion, JAC decided to hold another protest and sit-in in front of parliament house on Tuesday as no breakthrough has taken place.
On the occasion, All-Non-Medical Health Employees Association President Manzar Abbas Naqvi expressed serious reservations over the unjustified distribution of power among the medical and non-medical staff. “The influential status of medical staff compelled us to go on strike,” Naqvi said.
