Day Before Delhi HC Hearing, NrDMC Releases One Month Salary Of Agitating Hindu Rao Hospital Doctors And Staff

The North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NrDMC) released one month's salary to all the doctors and nursing and paramedical staff of Hindu Rao Hospital and Group D employees of three zones amid the ongoing agitation of the resident doctors and nursing staff of two corporation-run hospitals, late on Wednesday (14 October) evening, NrDMC Mayor Jai Prakash told IANS.

"One month's salary of around 2,000 employees amounting to Rs 30 crore have been released by us tonight. It will reflect into their accounts by Thursday morning," Prakash informed.

The development has come ahead of the hearing of a suo moto petition in the Delhi High Court that is listed for Thursday.

The court had taken suo motu cognisance of the non-payment of salaries to MCD employees, after observing various media reports claiming that the doctors at different hospitals, including Kasturba Hospital, Hindu Rao Hospital etc., which are managed by the civic body, were not getting salaries.

However, the NrDMC Mayor said that disbursement of salaries just a day before the hearing is merely a coincidence. "We are releasing salaries as and when funds are arranged. A week ago, we dispersed pensions amounting to Rs 51 crore which were pending since the last six months. It has nothing to do with the matter being listed in court," Prakash claimed.

Meanwhile, reacting to the news, the agitating doctors maintained that they will continue with their protest till the corporation clears their pending salaries completely.

"This is just a gimmick to make headlines. We were already entitled to receive one month's salary as 15th is our payday which is tomorrow. We are still three months behind and would continue our protest till all the dues are cleared," said Abhimanyu Sardana, president of the resident doctors' association at Hindu Rao Hospital.

The resident doctors and nursing staff of Hindu Rao are on a sit-in protest for more than a week, demanding immediate release of their salaries pending for over four months.

The doctors have absolved themselves from all the services of the hospital which was a dedicated Covid facility. The Delhi government converted the hospital into a non-Covid hospital on Tuesday after observing low bed occupancy.

(This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.)