ESIC Alwar FMG interns go on strike over 7-month pending stipend
Alwar: Disappointed over not receiving their stipend for the last seven months, several Foreign Medical Graduate (FMG) interns at ESIC Medical College and Hospital, Alwar, have gone on strike demanding immediate disbursement of the pending amount.
The medicos pointed out that despite working continuous 24-28-hour shifts, handling heavy patient load, emergencies, and ward duties with full dedication, they have not been paid their stipend.
"The continued delay in stipend payment has caused severe financial and mental stress to all FMGE doctors," the All FMGs Association (AFA) said in a post on X.
The association also shared a video showing FMG doctors sitting on the ground with placards. According to the association, the doctors were forced to go on strike because they received no assurance from the administration, and their repeated requests were ignored.
"We have raised this issue many times through proper channels, but no satisfactory action has been taken so far. Therefore, as a last resort, we are forced to initiate strike action until our rightful dues are cleared," the association said.
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Their demands include the immediate release of the pending 7 months' stipend, assurance of timely stipend payment in future and a written confirmation from the administration.
The medicos said, "We remain committed to patient care, but we also deserve fair and timely compensation for our work."
In another post on February 4, the association stated that the Supreme Court of India warned the National Medical Commission (NMC) over the non-payment of stipend to medicos.
A bench of Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice P.B. Varale heard the matter regarding non-payment of stipend. The bench clearly said that it would initiate contempt proceedings if the stipends were not paid. The court observed that doctors work 24 to 48 hours, and the stipend is their basic right.
The association alleged that in one of the connected cases, the court directed retrospective payment of stipend to the batch that had filed the petition.
"For the rest of the matters, the counsel appearing mentioned that huge expenses are incurred by the doctors while pursuing their course and they deserve a stipend as a matter of right," the association wrote in the post.
The petitioner medicos are represented by Advocate Tanvi Dubey and Charu Mathur, while the NMC is represented by advocate Gaurav Sharma before the Supreme Court.
The court has listed the remaining matters for final hearing next week.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported about this matter where the Supreme Court slammed the NMC over the non-payment of stipend to the Indian and Foreign Medical Graduates undergoing MBBS internship. The bench noted that the NMC failed to comply with its own directive issued in July this year requiring all medical colleges to mandatorily disclose stipend details.
