Ayush doctors demand equal pay with MBBS doctors
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, June 16 2020: All Manipur Ayush Doctors' Association has demanded the State to provide Ayush doctors/practitioners under National Health Mission Manipur pay equal with allopathy/MBBS medical practitioners.

The association also asked the State to regularise the doctors and warned of a cease work strike from June 22 if the latter fails to come out with a positive response at the earliest.

Speaking to the media at Uripok Ningthou Khongjam Leikai Samadon Shanglen, association's general secretary Dr Moirangthem Kenedy maintained that the ayush doctors have been serving the State since 2006 although they have been receiving proportionately low salary.

The doctors have submitted memoranda to the State Mission Director and the State Govt highlighting their challenges and low pay they are getting on multiple occasions, he said.

The association has also submitted a memorandum to the authority concerned regarding the matter but the association has not received any positive response so far, he added.

With the Govt paying no attention, a joint meeting of AYUSH doctors under NHM, Manipur and pharmacists was convened and it was subsequently resolved to call the cease work strike starting from June 22, he continued.

He highlighted that AYUSH doctors and allopathy doctors used to get an equal salary of Rs 15,000 but the pay of the allopathy doctors was doubled in 2010 while the pay for AYUSH doctors saw a mere increase of Rs 3,750 .

The pay of allopathy doctors was further increased to Rs 37,000 in 2013 while AYUSH doctors' pay was raised to 24,000.With further pay revision in 2017, the pay for the allopathy doctors have been raised to Rs 57,000 while the salary for AYUSH doctors was raised to Rs 29,138 only.

Such disproportionate pay hike and discriminatory treatment meted out to the AYUSH doctors is discouraging, he lamented.

The AYUSH doctors and pharmacists have been actively assisting and discharging their duties at many quarantine centres and despite the similar services they provide, they are to treated differently, he added while appealing the authority concerned to consider their proposals at the earliest.

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