Rs 100 per day stipend: MBBS Interns of Lata Mangeshkar Hospital stage protest

Nagpur: Terming Rs 100 per day stipend as "insulting", around 140 MBBS interns belonging to Lata Mangeshkar Hospital, Nagpur (LMH) and NKP Salve Institute of Medical Sciences have resorted to strike from Monday.

The doctors, who have withdrawn their services and opted for peaceful sit-in-dharna to raise their voice, are demanding a "respectable stipend" since they are claiming that their present stipend of Rs 3000 per month is lower than the salary paid to the daily wage workers and unskilled labourers.

Although the college management and the dean have been requesting the students to withdraw their strike, the medicos are demanding a written assurance regarding the revision of the stipend.

Meanwhile, the protesting medicos have informed TOI that Dr Ashish Deshmukh, the treasurer of LMH trust, visited them on Tuesday. He reportedly urged the students for withdrawing the strike.

After completion of MBBS course, it is mandatory for the intern doctors to undergo 12 months compulsory internship. During this period, the MBBS graduates get trained by learning the methods and modalities for administering actual practice, and they receive practical training. 

Last year, the UG medical education board of NMC had released the Draft Regulations For Rotational Compulsory Regulations, 2021. Regarding stipend, the Draft mentioned that All Interns shall be paid stipend as fixed by the appropriate fee fixation authority applicable to the Institution/university/ state.

Therefore, the chances of the Interns doctors getting stipend for their service largely depends upon their concerned parent institutes.

Also Read: FMGs to get stipend in Punjab, medical colleges told to submit proposal to State Medical Council

While the work responsibilities of the MBBS interns are almost same throughout the country, the amount of stipend they receive varies depending on the State. In case of Maharashtra, the MBBS interns belonging to Government Medical Colleges receive an amount of Rs 11,000 as monthly stipend. However, the intern doctors belonging to AIIMS, a central government institute, receive Rs 26,300 per month as stipend.

In case of private medical colleges the amount of stipend gets fixed by the college management. Recently the MBBS interns of Lata Mangeshkar Hospital, Nagpur (LMH) and NKP Salve Institute of Medical Sciences have resorted to stike as they are protesting against Rs 3000 monthly stipend, which is lesser than the daily wage labourers. Besides, the medicos are claiming that they have not received any stipend for the past two months.

The doctors were seen holding placards that read "Rs 100 per day is not a good pay", "No service without justice", "Not pleading we are demanding" etc.

While commenting on the matter, an MBBS intern who is leading the strike, Ashutosh Ade told the Times of India, "All we want is a respectable stipend. We are not shouting slogans, nor creating obstacles in patient care. We just have withdrawn our services and staging a totally peaceful sit-in dharna"

Terming such an amout of stipend to be an "insult", he further added, "Even daily wage workers and unskilled labourer get more than this." He mentioned to the daily that they have already sent letters, reminders, and ultimatums to the management.

Speaking to the daily, another intern said, "The dean and management are asking us to end the strike and discuss the issue. We want written assurance that our stipends will be revised."

Meanwhile, the dean of the medical college, Dr. Kajal Mitra, who is on sick leave, confirmed that the management committees of the private medical colleges take the decision regarding the stipend.

Speaking to Live Nagpur, student's representative Ashutosh Ade mentioned that apart from the stipend hike, they have also demanded free accommodation in the hostel and they have also urged the authorities for waiving off the hefty amount of fees that is being charged as late fees.

He said, "We submitted multiple letters in the last 3 months to the management regarding an increment in our stipend from the current 3000/- to 11000/- as par with the stipend given in Government Medical Colleges in Maharashtra and free hostel accommodation for interns, for which we have not received any documented response yet."

Also Read: MBBS Interns in Bihar demand Stipend Hike, Close OPD Services