Banas Medical College MBBS Interns on Strike Demanding Stipend Hike

Banas: Around 100 MBBS interns at Banas Medical College, Palanpur have called a strike demanding a stipend of Rs. 18,200 as opposed to Rs 12000 that they are receiving currently. The Interns are also demanding proper accommodation arrangements.

The interns of the medical college have stated that they are being paid Rs. 12,000 per month which is significantly less than the minimum stipend mandated by the National Medical Commission (NMC) guidelines.

Speaking on the matter, one of the protesting medicos, on the condition of anonymity, told Medical Dialogues, “We have based our demand on three things, first, NMC guidelines which stated that the minimum stipend should be Rs 18,200 for a month. Secondly, it was clearly mentioned that an intern should at least receive 500 per day. Then, there is also a high court order which stated that if any institute fails to provide the fixed stipend to the interns, they should not be burdened with work.”

The medico also informed that they have approached the dean and the authorities regarding the stipend issue but they have not paid any attention to their demands. Hence, the intern doctors will continue to boycott work till their demands are fulfilled.

The United Doctors Front Association (UDFA) has extended its support to the protesting medical interns. Dr. Arun Kumar, National General Secretary of the association, highlighted additional issues faced by the interns. He pointed out that, according to NMC regulations, hostel facilities should be provided to interns. However, no such housing arrangements have been made near the campus. Instead, interns must travel a minimum of 8 to 10 kilometers to reach the hospital, which is adversely affecting their physical health.

Commenting on the issue, Dr Arun told Medical Dialogues, “Interns are forced to sign a consent form agreeing to no hostel facilities inside the premises. On the other hand, there is a Sainik school running inside the campus. If there can be schools inside the campus, why can’t authorities build a hostel? How can NMC permit a medical college that has no hostel facility? Then can we say that there is corruption in officials who are giving the nod to the facility despite not fulfilling NMC criteria? The intern doctors have been on strike since yesterday and UDF will extend support to their cause as the association always campaigns for the rights and wellbeing of the medical professionals.”

Dr Arun Kumar also pointed out that the duty hour of an intern or resident doctor is supposed to be 48 hours but currently the interns are often working 60 hours a week. On the one hand, they are under tremendous workload, and on the other hand, they are not being sufficiently paid. They have already submitted a letter to BMCRI management in which they mentioned that they had a previous meeting with the chairman of the institute where the stipend increase was agreed upon.

Meanwhile, the students have alleged that this morning, the authorities didn't allow them to enter the medical college premises and they were threatened. "The management did not take any initiative to have a conversation with us regarding the issue. Moreover, when we tried to enter the premises today, the security personnel stopped us saying that we have not been allotted any duty for the day. Almost 15 to 20 new security personals where employed by the college administration only to stop us from entering the premises. This sheer lack of apathy has perplexed us as one of the security guards even assaulted one of our interns and even threatened us. As the management is not paying any attention to our worries, we would like to ask the higher authorities to take necessary steps to improve the prevailing situation," the protesting medico added.

The matter of stipend is pending before the Supreme Court. The recent hearing was held On May 6.