Nurses go on hunger strike demanding permanent appointment

CHENNAI: The 2,300 government nurses appointed on contract continued fast at Valluvar Kottam on Thursday.

The nurses demanded to be appointed on permanent basis similar to the appointment of government doctors who worked on Covid duty.

Former health minister and current MLA C Vijayabaskar visited the nurses in person and condemned the DMK government for terminating the services of the nurses. He advocated the demands of the nurses and supported them.

Meanwhile, the joint action committee of Tamil Nadu MRB Nurses Association and MRB Covid-19 Nurses Association on Thursday said that the assurance given by the government to appoint them as contract nurses has not been issued for the batches appointed in 2020 and before.

More than 6,000 nurses were appointed in 2020 after the Medical Recruitment Board exam and 2,300 nurses before this recruitment and 950 nurses were laid off temporarily. Some of them were transferred and appointed as temporary staff in the government hospitals. However, 1,331 doctors who were temporarily appointed during the pandemic were made permanent and given appointment orders.

A statement from the committee stated that the nurses have been working for the last 2 years and 7 months by continuously attending the Covid cases. After the protest by the nurses on 28 September, 2021, the order to appoint them under the District Health Society by National Health Mission was cancelled and they were assured that they would be appointed as contract nurses. However, the government laid off 818 MRB Covid-19 Nurses. The promise of providing alternative work to them has not been implemented till date, " the statement said.

The recent order was issued on December 30th to lay off 2,472 MRB Nurses. Rajesh S, secretary of MRB Nurses Association said that for the last 2 years and 7 months we have left our families and have been working without pay for the last 6 months in different districts. The government did not fulfill their promise and told us that we will be given work in government primary health centers. The order issued on December 30th should be immediately withdrawn, " he said.