KARACHI, July 4: A large number of paramedics from all over the province staged a sit-in near the Sindh Secretariat on Monday, demanding a major over-haul in the service structure for nurses, ward-boys and other paramedical staff. The paramedics are observing partial strikes for the last several days, and on Monday sanitary staff, nurses and other staff gathered once again on Court Road, demanding that the long-pending service structure issue be resolved at the earliest.
The call for the protest had been given by the Paramedical Joint Action Committee and representative staff from government hospitals in Sanghar, Shikarpur, Hyderabad, Thatta, Badin, Larkana, Mirpurkhas, Nawabshah, Sukkur, Jacobabad and Karachi participated in a rally on Court Road, prior to staging the sit-in.
The protesters gathered on the Court Road to make a way for their entry to the New Sindh Secretariat where provincial health hierarchy has its offices, but they were prevented from entering the secretariat gates.
A heavy posse of police and rangers were present at the site.
However, Sindh senior minister Syed Sardar Ahmed visited the protesters and assured them of his support with regard to acceptance of various demands of the goveremnt hospitals staff.
Similarly, senior officials of the provincial health department also visited the demonstrators during their sit-in near Sindh Secretariat and assured of their support, according to the PJAC leaders.
The paramedics have earlier observed a token strike for five days.
The senior minister also reportedly told the protesters that their representatives can hold a meeting with him on Tuesday with regard to action committee’s demands.
“We will once again apprise the minister of the problems and seek his support”, said Pershotum, and Zakir Hussain, leaders of the PJAC.
While quoting the health officials, staff leaders said during their negotiations on Monday they were given to understand that the health department had already finalized a summary and moved it for approval by the higher authorities.
However, the leaders expressed surprise over the stance of the health department, saying that Syed Sardar Ahmad denied that any proposal or report had been received by the finance department about introduction or approval of service structure of the lower grade health employees.
Among others Niaz Hussain Bhutto, Qayyum Marwat and Abdul Latif Otho, addressed the gathering and expressed their resentments over alleged indifferent attitude of the government towards their demands.
The leaders said that the Sindh Health department, despite justifying a separate service structures for paramedical staff, had not been able to deliver the goods in favour of the aggrieved staff, which numbered around 33,000.
The protesters were holding banners and placards and raised slogans in favour of their demands.
They also demanded approval of service structure for them, withdrawal of a government decision regarding shifting of Services Hospital from its present location, allocation of son quota for recruitment. They are also criticizing separate governing boards for government teaching hospitals.s