Health and Family Welfare workers without salaries since December 2022

SRINAGAR — Thousands of employees of Health and Family Welfare in J&K are without salaries for the last five months in Jammu and Kashmir due to which they have been going through a very tough time.

The employees, including deputy Chief Medical Officers, educators and FMPHWs, said that they are without salaries for the last five months and even they didn’t get salaries on Eid-ul-Fitr eve.

Official sources told the news agency KNO that thousands of employees working in health centres across J&K under a Centrally-sponsored scheme have never got their salaries in time.

They said employees working under 2210 head never face such issues and get salaries in time but on the other hand, workers working under 2211 head have to bear the issue of delay in salaries. They said that despite being permanent employees of the Union Territory (UT), they have to come on the roads for their salaries.

President of Health and Family Welfare J&K, Nelofar said that the education of their children gets affected since they are not able to pay their fees regularly and despite putting in their best efforts during the COVID pandemic, they have to literally beg for salaries.

“Neither DPCs are being considered in stipulated time nor salaries are being released in time,” she said, adding, “Some of our employees are suffering from chronic diseases but they too are facing problems and their treatment gets delayed in the absence of salaries.”

Vice-president of the association, Masarat Jabeen said that Health and Family Welfare employees had to wait for DPC and salaries for years together.

She said the claims of women empowerment and ‘Beti Bachao’, Beti Padhao’ are just proving to be a hoax on the ground as despite providing primary promotive and curative health care for almost all the national health programs, they have to suffer.

“We have never received salaries on time, especially on festivals like Eid and despite working day and night like other employees. We are being given a step-motherly treatment due to unknown reasons,” she said.

“We are unable to submit the fee of our children, buy clothes and other necessary items in the absence of salaries since December last year,” Jabeen said.

The other members of the association said that despite meeting the Chief Secretary, Secretary Health and other higher officials in this regard, nothing is being done on the ground. They requested LG Manoj Sinha and other concerned officials to intervene in the matter and take immediate steps so that this issue gets resolved once and for all.

Chief Accounts Officer, Directorate of Health and Family Welfare, while acknowledging that employees are without salaries for the last 5-6 months, said that they have already taken up the issue with higher-ups and that employees will ‘definitely’ get salaries within the next 15 days.

“It is a Centrally-sponsored scheme but since 2021, the Government of India has issued a circular that States/UTs must spend the amount first on themselves. But that is not being done in J&K yet,” he said, adding, “We have submitted all details in Delhi and we expect all liabilities will be cleared in the next few days and employees will get salaries in the next two weeks.”