Staff at Hindu Rao Hospital have been protesting over delay in salary by over three months. (Express Photo: Praveen Khanna)Officials at Delhi government’s Urban Development department have written to the three MCDs to “consider” handing over their hospitals to the Delhi government if they are unable to pay their staff and to avoid “further anguish to medical, para medical and other staff”.
Delhi government and civic bodies have been at loggerheads over the past few months over non-payment of salaries to employees. Staff members at Hindu Rao Hospital, meanwhile, have been protesting to get their pending salaries. While MCDs allege the government has not paid them what they owe, the government denied the charge and said it has already given to the corporations what is owed to them.
The letter, written by the Additional Director (Local bodies), Urban Development department, addressed to the MCD commissioners said, “Serious concerns have been raised regarding non-payment of salaries/wages/other dues to medical, para medical and other staff working in Hindu Rao Hospital, Kasturba Hospital and other hospitals of DMCs. It has been mentioned that inability to pay salaries and other dues in time has led to a situation where proper treatment to Covid patients is not being given and Covid patients are forced to shift from Hindu Rao Hospital to Lok Nayak Hospital of GNCTD for continuum of medical care.”
The additional director also wrote that two installments of Basic Tax Assignment have already been released to the MCDs, and since the corporations have their own source of revenue, they should ensure sufficient provisioning of funds to pay salaries.
North MCD Mayor, Jai Prakash, however, said the government wants to create an atmosphere of anarchy in Delhi by not giving funds so that they can take advantage of it in the upcoming corporation elections. The claim was refuted by the government.
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