NEW DELHI: The demand for proper N95 masks, quarantine facilities and drinking water has led to the sacking of more than 80 nurses from Hakim Abdul Hameed Centenary Hospital (HAH Centenary Hospital), claimed staffers of the hospital run by the Jamia Hamdard University.
On Monday, the nurses took out a protest inside the hospital premises due to the firing of 84 colleagues without warning.
“We had been highlighting some of our issues for quite some time now. This included distribution of good quality PPE kits, including N95 masks, provision of safe drinking water, and give us some form of allowance. We’d informed the MS multiple times to meet these basic demands of ours, but no one ever paid much heed. Rather, the administration shouted at us and told us to leave. The language used by them was derogatory and their behaviour rude overall,” said Arun Kumar, one of the nurses who faced termination.
“This happened on Saturday night… The nurses on night duty had completed their shift and were then handed over the letter. Their logic is that some our contracts have ended and thus we are being asked to leave. But then many of our terms ended in February, why did they make us work for four more months then?,” Kumar added.
According to him, even the salaries of staffers who got couldn’t report for duty due to the lockdown are also pending.
“The administration said that we deliberately skipped duties,” he noted.
Owing to lack of proper arrangements, the nurses claim that five to six staffers have already tested positive for the virus.
The nurses have now written to CM Kejriwal, health and labour ministers to intervene. In the letter, the nursing officers have highlighted 19 points as demands which, if not addressed, will force them to go for mass strike from July 15 onwards.
Hospital officials, however, rejected the claims stating that the only legit demand was the one regarding drinking water.
“Rest of their demands are based on false allegations. Their contracts expired and they were terminated,” said the official.
Rajya Sabha MP writes to chief minister
Intervening in the matter, CPI Rajya Sabha MP Binoy Viswam has also written to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to ensure that the nurses are treated with respect and dignity and are provided the minimum essentials they require to conduct their duty.