MUZAFFARABAD (Kashmir English): Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Health Department employees on Monday staged a protest rally across several cities of Azad Kashmir against the government’s failure to accept their Charter of Demands.
As per the details, hundreds of health department employees, including women, gathered at Garhi Pan Chowk and Azadi Chowk in Muzaffarabad, blocking the main highway and disrupting traffic.
In Rawalakot, the protest rally started from CMH and reached the Press Club, where it turned into a sit-in. Meanwhile, female health workers burned their dupattas in Rawalakot and Muzaffarabad in protest.
The employees have been protesting for several months. They announced that a complete strike will be called after April 30 and it will be intensified further.
The protesters, who included paramedical staff, Maternal New-born and Child Health (MNCH) and National Health Programme workers, demanded risk allowance, restoration of service structure, establishment of a Health Foundation, and provision of GPF.
The protestors in Muzaffarabad said that paramedical staff should be given health allowance like doctors and employees should be given service structure pension and job protection on the same pattern as other provinces.
Protest in Farward Kahuta
Health workers in Haveli district took to the streets to demand their rights, while medical services in RHCs, BHUs and CHOs across the district were severely affected due to protest.
The protest rally started from the PWD office and ended in front of the District Headquarters Hospital in Farward Kahuta. Employees belonging to various health organizations participated in the rally in large numbers and raised strong slogans in favor of their demands.
On this occasion, Anjuman Tajran Haveli and District Bar Haveli also expressed their full support and expressed their solidarity with the employees.
In their address, the speakers said that health workers have been suffering from serious problems such as unavailability of service structure, imbalance in salaries and lack of basic facilities for a long time, which have become imperative to be resolved immediately.
They demanded that the government immediately approve the charter of demands of health workers and find a practical solution to their legitimate problems. The protesters made it clear that their peaceful protest would continue until the demands were approved and the complete boycott of OPD would be maintained.
