West Bengal Shocker: Govt Job Offers Rs 12,000 Per Month Salary to MD Doctors, Same as Ayah and Chowkidar

New Delhi: The recent recruitment notification by the District Child Protection Unit of West Bengal's Darjeeling District has shocked the members of the medical fraternity as authorities have put doctors, ayah, and chowkidar in the same salary bracket by offering Rs 12,000 per month for all of these posts.

As per the notification dated 12.07.2024, a doctor having an MBBS along with a specialized DNB/MD degree in Pediatrics will get Rs 12,000 per month, the amount which has also been offered for the posts of Nurse, Ayah, and Chowkidar.

Soon after the notice was published, it received criticism from the members of the medical fraternity who alleged that doctors were shown 'disrespect' as they were being offered the same salary as the group D category staff such as an Ayah or a Chowkidar.

Releasing the notification, the District Child Protection Unit, under the Social Welfare Section (SWC) in the office of the District Magistrate (DM) of Darjeeling district invited applications for the vacant posts including Manager/Coordinator, Social Worker cum Early Childhood Educator, Nurse, Doctor, Ayah, and Chowkidar.

It mentioned that candidates would be recruited for these posts on a temporary and contractual basis in the Specialized Adoption Agency (SAA) at Matigara Children Home for Girls in Siliguri for implementation of Mission Vatsalya, a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) launched by the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD), Government of India, in 2009.

The notice specified the number of available posts, preferred age bracket for the candidates, required educational qualifications, minimum experience, and other preferred qualifications, along with consolidated pay per month offered for these posts. As per the notification, the last date for submitting the applications for these posts is 30th July 2024.

According to the DCPU notification, only 1 post of Doctor (male/female) is available and the candidates must be 24-40 years old as on the date of advertisement. In order to apply for this post, the candidates must be an MBBS pass-out. Further, the notice mentioned that candidates having DNB or MD in Pediatrics will be preferred for the post and they will be given Rs 12,000 per month as consolidated pay.

However, what shocked many was the fact that the same amount was being offered to the candidates selected for the post of Nurse, Ayah or Chowkidar. While the required educational qualification for the post of Nurse is H.S or Equivalent Diploma in Nursing/GNM (General Nursing and Midwifery Course), the candidates need to be Madhyamik (Class 10) or Class VII qualified to be selected as an Ayah and Chowkidar respectively.

Therefore, a nurse/Ayah/chowkidar will also get Rs 12,000 consolidated pay per month. However, Rs 23,170 is being offered for the post of a manager/coordinator with a PG degree in psychology or social work and a diploma in computer application from a recognized institute. Social Worker cum Early Childhood Educator, having a graduate degree in Psychology/social work, will get Rs 18,536 per month.

Doctors Upset with Govt Notification: 

This notification sparked controversy as members of the medical fraternity expressed their disappointment over the notice. Commenting on the matter, Dr Arjun Das Gupta from the West Bengal Doctors' Forum (WBDF) told Medical Dialogues, "While employers are entitled to put whatever salary they offer to their employees, this is more of an introspection for the doctors. It shows what we have come down to."

He added, "There is a huge unemployment in terms of junior doctors and people are desperate to get a job. So naturally, doctors have become the soft target. People are taking advantage of our helplessness."

Dr. Koushik Chaki from WBDF said, "I do have appropriate respect for all professionals in their respective professional domain. But I fail to understand that the policymakers, many a time, do not understand that "if one throws peanuts, they get monkeys". Medical professionals have to go through a rigorous and long term training to get licence to practice, and it’s important that their capacities, if utilised, should be appropriately and honourably compensated in whatever name you call it!" 

"There is also a steep increase in the number of medical colleges across the country and with the huge pool of new generation of doctors in near future, we feel that this situation is going to be worse in future," he added.

Darjeeling DM Office Issues Corrigendum: 

Amid the criticism and the severe objections from the medical fraternity, the Office of the District Magistrate and District Collector issued a corrigendum on 22.07.2024 clarifying that the vacancy position described for the doctor is "part-time" in nature. 

"With respect to the recruitment notice published for the filling of G-SAA positions of Matigara Children Home of Darjeeling District vide. 591/DCPU/DJ-24 Dated 12.07.2024, corrigendum is being issued to the effect that the vacancy position described for Doctor is 'part-time' in nature and payment shall be guided as 'honorarium' and it shall be as per the scale as provided under the guidelines of Mission Vatsalya to extent adopted by the Go WB in WCD&SW Department," stated the corrigendum.

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