JNIMS internees stop assisting doctors
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, August 18 2025: Protesting the authority's refusal to hike their monthly stipend, JNIMS internees have stopped assisting doctors in diagnosing and treating patients at JNIMS Hospital from today.

Highlighting their grievances, JNIMS Students' Association and Internees of 2020-2021 Batch staged a protest demonstration inside JNIMS complex today.

Speaking to media persons by the sideline of the protest demonstration, JNIMS Students' Association general secretary Yumkhaibam Saleiman said that the JNIMS internees were paid a monthly stipend of Rs 15,000 when JNIMS Medical College was set up in 2015 .

Since the monthly stipend remains unchanged and it has not been reviewed till date, Saleiman said.

Pointing out that the monthly stipend of Rs 15,000 is too small and outdated, the internees have been demanding the authorities to hike the stipend.

Memorandums were submitted to the Governor, the ex-Chief Minister and concerned authorities of JNIMS but to no avail, he said.

He said that the monthly stipend is not commensurate to their work load and working hours.

One week back, a memorandum was submitted to the Governor to hike the monthly stipend to Rs 31,500 but there has been no response till date.

Aggrieved by the authorities' failure to give a positive response, the internees decided to stop assisting doctors in the diagnosis and treatment of patients from today, Saleiman said.

The demand for revising the monthly stipend is a longstanding one.

Internees of the preceding batches too voiced the same demand.

The internees cannot make both ends met with the meagre stipend of just Rs 15,000 in view of the ever rising cost of living.

Even this trivial sum given as stipend is not paid regularly, he decried.

At present, there are 85 MBBS internees and 45 BDS internees at JNIMS.

Internees as well as undergraduate students would stop attending classes and duties from today.

If the authorities fail to review the monthly stipend within a week, students and internees of JNIMS would be compelled to take out a peaceful protest rally to the Raj Bhavan, he said.

He added that the indefinite protest will go on until a conclusive and definitive dialogue is held between internees, students and authorities concerned and the demands of the internees are duly met.

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