Resenting the silence of the state government on its demand to increase the superannuation age of doctors from the existing 60 to 65 years in line with other States in the country, Nagaland In-service Doctors’ Association (NIDA) has threatened a “full-scale” protest if the issue was not taken up in the next cabinet meeting scheduled in the second week of April.
Doctors under NIDA have been protesting since January 22 after the an emergency meeting of its executives and district representatives by wearing ‘black arm bands’ over non-fulfilment of the demand.
Interacting with a section of media persons at NHAK here on Tuesday afternoon, NIDA president Dr. E Phyantsuthung regretted that even after two months of the symbolic protest by the doctors, the State government has not taken up the issue.
He said NIDA had submitted its first memorandum over the issue to the government in 2016. However, the matter was kept was in cold storage and in October 2020 NIDA revived the issue when it submitted two memorandums- to the chief secretary and two to the chief minister
In its last memorandum on March 19, NIDA urged upon the chief minister to separate the superannuation issue of the doctors from the agenda of cabinet subcommittee and expedite it in the next cabinet meeting for immediate logical conclusion.
Phyantsuthung explained that NIDA did not escalate the agitation in view of the positive assurance received from State’s health minister S Pangnyu Phom.
He said due to the second wave of COVID-19 currently in other parts of the country and ongoing COVID vaccination and resumption of non-COVID essential services, the doctors refrained from intensifying their protest.
He expressed the hope that the state cabinet would take up the issue at its next meeting, likely to be held during the second week of April. Phyantsuthung, warned that if the matter was still not addressed, NIDA would have no option but to intensify its stir by launching a full-scale protest.
Convenor of Core Committee on Superannuation Dr. Ahu Sekhose informed media persons that out of the 27 States in the country, only Meghalaya and Nagaland did not increase the superannuation age of the government doctors. He, however, added that Meghalaya cabinet has taken up the issue and it was under process.
He claimed that some States had even increased the retirement age to 70 years, while Assam and Sikkim had increased superannuation in two phase, from 60 to 64 years and from 64 to 67.
He said NIDA was demanding increase of the retirement age from 60 to 65 years only for clinical purpose and from 60 to 62 for administration.
Sekhose reminded the government that it was not the doctors who are seeking enhancement of superannuation age, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself who announced it. He said some States accordingly implemented it. He also said the finance department’s reason that acceding to the demand would have implications in other technical departments was not justified.
He claimed that though the doctor-patient ratio should be 1:1000 as per WHO standards, the ratio in Nagaland was 1:3000.
NHAK managing director and core committee convener Dr Thorse said the ongoing symbolic protest by the doctors was perhaps the longest since as it was already over two months. He also said that the issue was demoralising the doctors and that both the core committee and NIDA were under pressure due to the agitation.
He cautioned the government not to consider the doctors’ concern and silence as weakness.