Give us time, have faith in govt: Sakeena to striking medical interns

Srinagar, Sep 5: With medical interns continuing their strike over a demand for a higher stipend, Jammu and Kashmir Health and Medical Education Minister Sakeena Itoo on Saturday appealed to them to return to work, saying the government was examining their demand and would not ignore their concerns.
Itoo said the matter had already moved through the government machinery and was now with the Finance Department. Clarifications sought during the process, she said, had also been furnished.
“This is already under process,” Itoo told reporters on the sidelines of a Teachers’ Day event.
Her remarks came a day after she met representatives of the protesting interns. Itoo said the government remained willing to engage with them and that there was no question of treating the agitation as a contest between the administration and the doctors.
“It is not a matter of failure or success. Don’t make it a competition,” she said.
The interns, including those pursuing MBBS and BDS internships, are seeking an increase in their monthly stipend from around Rs 12,300 to Rs 30,000. They have maintained that the existing stipend has remained unchanged for years even as the cost of living and the responsibilities attached to internship have increased.
Itoo said she understood the interns’ concerns but asked them to give the government time to take the matter to its logical conclusion.
Calling the protesting doctors “our children”, she said the administration did not want them to feel that their concerns were being overlooked.
“They are our children. They are not strangers,” she said.
The minister said she had kept the channel of communication open following Friday’s meeting with representatives of the interns.
“The doors of conversation are still open for them,” she said.
At the same time, Itoo made it clear that the government expected the interns to resume duties, pointing to the implications of the strike for patients in government hospitals.
“Treatment of people is very important,” she said, adding that interns formed an important part of hospital services and that their contribution could not be overlooked.
Itoo said the government wanted to address the stipend issue without allowing the dispute to affect patient care.
“I hope that the children will come back to work,” she said.
Referring to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s involvement, Itoo said he had held meetings on the issue and was aware of the concerns raised by the interns.
“We will definitely do whatever we can for them. We will not stay behind in that,” she said, adding that the government would fulfil the demand. (KNS)