NEW DELHI: At least 300 doctors working in dispensaries, hospitals and administration of the Delhi government’s health department are waiting for their promotion which they claim is pending since 2018.
There is also a looming fear of missing out another promotion in December if the health department do not look into their cases with urgency, they said.
According to some officials in the health department, the government has also not given the incentive which other states have given to their corona warriors. The officials said that the Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC), which clears the appraisal forms of the employees and sends it to the Lieutenant Governor, has not been formed yet.
After their appointment is done through the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), the doctors and medical officers get their first promotion after a service of four years to become senior medical officers. They then go on to become chief medical officers after another five years of service. Before getting clearance by the DPC, the vigilance department also checks if there has been any complaint or charges of corruption against the doctors.
When contacted, Delhi government’s Principal Secretary, Health, Manisha Saxena said that the department is working on this issue and is doing the groundwork for the promotions of the doctors. She added that by the end of this month, the promotion process will be over.
The aggrieved doctors, meanwhile, stated that the promotion was supposed to take place way back in 2018. “We waited for two years and thought things would work out but then Covid came and everything came to a halt. However, despite Covid subsiding the promotions have still not been cleared and it is going to be five years,” a doctor working at a dispensary told The Morning Standard.
“We have worked our best during Covid and our promotions should not be delayed anymore. Inflation has gone up. Promotion will not only upgrade our ranks but also help us in financial matters.”