The central areas of the city came to a standstill as a large number of doctors and paramedical staff from different government hospitals rallied to protest against the non-payment of salaries and non-regularisation of their services. Around 1,374 paramedics of 11 hospitals working under the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) took to the streets against the KMC and demanded regularisation of contractual paramedics of 21 hospitals operating under the local government. The hospital staff also closed down outdoor-patient departments at different hospitals, leaving the patients visiting to face several hardships.
Reportedly, young medical staffers ransacked the offices located in Civic Centre in the Gulshan-e-Iqbal town, throwing stones and flowerpots at glass walls, breaking windowpanes and furiously shouting slogans against city government authorities.
Initially, the paramedics had gathered outside the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital (ASH) and staged a protest at the Nazimabad No 7 bus stop, blocking the roads leading to Golimar and Board Office for all vehicular traffic.
They chanted slogans against KMC Administrator Muhammad Hussain Syed and demanded regularisation of all 1,374 of them working at hospitals operating under the local government.
Later, the angry protesters besieged the KMC head office and staged a demonstration outside the Civic Centre.
They shattered the KMC headquarters’ windows and damaged its furniture until the police arrived on the scene and dispersed them.
Only a few policemen were present there who unsuccessfully tried to control the situation as scuffles between cops and infuriated medics were witnessed inside the building.
Due to the presence of hundreds of people at Hassan Square, all traffic leading to Jail Chowrangi on the University Road was adversely disrupted.
The demonstrators dispersed only after the law enforcers tear-gassed and baton-charged them.
The KMC administrator said the protesters damaged public property to express their anger, and the local government would register a case against the attackers.
ASH Emergency Ward in-charge Dr Naeem said the local government is not regularising 1,374 paramedics of 21 hospitals operating under the KMC.
He said the paramedics of 11 hospitals participated in the protest and all the departments, except the emergency wards, at these 11 hospitals remained closed.
He also said the contractual paramedics would continue their protest until their demand of regularisation is met.
“Contractual paramedics working at hospitals in other provinces have been regularised, but the paramedics in Sindh have yet to be regularised. We shall not sit silently, and decide our future strategy in the next few days,” he added.
