No quick cure

With likely disruption of services in the form of mass casual leave by medical officers looming large from March 7 to 9, the state government has to arrive at a decision in order to resolve the issue so as to avoid the inconvenience. The medical doctors under the banner of Nagaland In-service Doctors Association (NIDA) had been demanding increase of the superannuation from 60 to 65 but later trimmed it to 62 years. The government reportedly suggested 60 for doctors working as administrators and 62 for doctors on clinical duties. According to NIDA the government had given a written assurance of responding to the demand within a period not extending beyond one year on April 17, 2021. However, as the period has passed ten months, NIDA decided to activate itself in order to have the government take a decision before next April. NIDA’s contention is that separating doctors in administrators and clinical fields was not as easy therefore, has resolved that the superannuation be the same at 62 years. Also according to NIDA their demand for increasing the superannuation is on the premise that there is shortage of medical doctors and that the increase would help tide of the problem. Currently all government employees in Nagaland attain superannuation at 60 or on completion of 35 years of service or whichever is earlier. It may be recalled that the state government had in 1991 reduced the superannuation from 58 to 57 or on completion of 33 years of service. This has led to outrage as the affected employees took the government to court for the arbitrariness. Again, the matter was sparked when in 2007 the government enhanced the age from 57 to 60 years but without length of service. This had brought some cheer to the government servants. However again in 2009 the government fiddled with the matter when it introduced length of service to 35 years and superannuation remaining unchanged at 60. The factor that has led to demand for increase in superannuation in several state was report that the union government’s decision of raising the retirement bar for central government doctors in 2017 from 60 to 65 years. However doctors holding administrative posts would retire at 62. UP has decided to increase superannuation of medical doctors from 60 to 62. On the other hand, Haryana has in fact reduced the superannuation from 60 to 58 in September 2021. In 2016, the Haryana government had increased the superannuation of doctors from 58 to 65 years only for those involved or engaged in clinical duties. Under the 2021 rule, doctors in Haryana who will retire after attaining superannuation at 58 may be re-employed on a yearly basis up to a maximum of 65 years subject to certain criteria. In Andhra Pradesh doctors having PG degree and diploma will retire at 63 years while undergraduates will retire at 60. States like Telangana and West Bengal have also increased the retirement from 60 to 63 only for teaching doctors. Perhaps the state government is placed in a situation of being damned if it will and also damned if it does not keeping in view of the likely response from various state employees associations. Certainly there appears to be no quick cure and little panacea for the ailment.