GTB resident docs allege pay cut over NEET-PG stir, write to Minister Jain

New Delhi: As the NEET-PG Counselling begins to gain traction after multiple inordinate delays, doctors from the Guru Tegh Bahadur Hospital here, who were among the thousands who protested for expedited counselling, have now said that they are being "punished" for the protesting by having their salaries deducted.

The resident doctors of the hospital, which comes under the Delhi government, have also written to Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain — noting that their hospital was the only one in the city to have handed them this "punitive setback" when other hospitals like Safdarjung and RML hospitals have kept their word on not taking any action against those who had protested.

The resident doctors' association of the GTB hospital said that their salaries were cut and that they were marked absent for the duration of the protests despite being verbally assured by "multiple officers" of the administration that no such action would be taken.

Doctors who spoke to Millennium Post said that the salary cuts go up to 50 per

cent of their net remuneration this month.

"When we staged the protest in December, the administration gave us a verbal assurance that no punitive or monetary action will be taken. Even during the course of the protest, we were in constant touch with the MD of GTB Hospital who kept on assuring us the same. However, things are now unfolding in a different way. The administration doesn't seem to understand that the protests were for the people of the country. We really needed doctors at that point of time but it appears that we continue to be at the receiving end again and again", said Dr Aditya Sriram the RDA president of the hospital.

The cut comes even as the Delhi government and CM Arvind Kejriwal had publicly shown support for the protesting doctors.

Dr Vivek Kumar said, "The most absurd thing is that the administration alleges we skipped the emergency duties but the truth is we continued that service. And after the police carried out a lathi charge on the doctors, we withdrew from that but only for a couple of days until the strike was called off."

"After much deliberation, the RDA of GTB Hospital has written to the Health Minister of Delhi Satyendra Jain to intervene and address this pressing issue as soon as possible", Dr Sunil Mann added.

"The Federation Of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) will amplify the misery of

GTB's doctors and we hope something positive will come out of this."