KOCHI: The High Court on Thursday restrained the state government from issuing final notification fixing Rs 20,000 as minimum wages per month for nurses in private hospitals. It posted the case to March 21.The state attorney accepted the notice on behalf of the government. The court made it clear the final notification based on the draft proposal should not be published. However, the hearings scheduled on Friday and Saturday can continue, the court held.
The court issued the interim order on a petition filed by Hussain Koya Thangal, secretary, Kerala Private Hospital Association, and Dr Joseph Benevan, managing director, Lourdes Hospital, Taliparamba who said they are aggrieved by the government’s action in hastily proceeding to implement the notification proposing to revise minimum wages by 150 per cent over the existing wages.
Following the draft proposal, more than 400 hospital managements, including the petitioners had filed objections pointing out serious infirmities in the proposal. However, in order to hastily implement the proposal, the government has scheduled to hear all the management within a short span of two days. According to the petitioners, their grievance will not be effectively heard and the government will not be in a position to apply its mind. The petitioners sought a directive to the state not to implement the proposals contained in the notification without affording the petitioners and others an opportunity of hearing.