Pics: Spoorthi Ullal

Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (ANK)

Mangaluru, Feb 12: Medical interns and post-graduate (PG) doctors serving at government Wenlock hospital staged protest here at the hospital on Wednesday, February 12, over nonpayment of stipend from the last 11 months.

The house surgeons alleged that they have not been paid stipend for the past 11 months. Their tenure ends in the month of March. Their stipend has not been released, despite chief minister B S Yediyurappa's written order dated December 24. They should get a stipend of Rs 20,000 per month each for their 11 month long internship. So far, the interns have reportedly not received a single rupee. This is the third successive batch of house surgeons facing the problem, it is said.

An order passed by the Directorate of Medical Education dated October 30 states that the stipends for the interns must be paid from the Government Wenlock hospital Arogya Raksha Samithi fund for the current year 2019 - 20. The interns have met medical superintendent Rajeshwari Devi and deputy commissioner Sindhu B Rupesh and they have said there is no fund available to pay stipend and, but an RTI reply stated clearly that there is money in the fund.

The work of interns involves hospital duty where sometimes they work for 18 hours continuously. Out of 250 medical students in the batch 2014-15, only 54 are students from the government merit quota through CET exams. The remaining students were admitted by the exam conducted by MAHE and they have been receiving stipend promptly each month paid by the college. As many as 54 of the house surgeons, have not received any amount, as they have to be paid stipend by the government.

They even have met deputy chief minister Ashwath Narayan, MP Nalin Kumar Kateel, district in-charge minister Kota Srinivas Poojary, principal secretaries Javed Akhtar and Hemalatha, and health and family welfare minister Sriramulu in this regard and were given assurance, but reportedly, no action has been taken till today. 

The house surgeons demand the concerned authorities to release stipend amount at the earliest.