Manipur staff to shut down OPD

Strike on in hospitals

Imphal, Feb. 23 : Striking Manipur government employees today decided to intensify their agitation by bringing the workers of essential services under the purview of their ceasework. According to the resolution adopted, health department employees will close the out patient department in government hospitals from Wednesday. Next, in-house patients in all government hospitals and health centres will be vacated from March 2. If the government still remains indifferent, the employees will close the casualty departments across the state from March 5. The employees, under the banner of Joint Administrative Council, have been on ceasework since January 16 to demand implementation of the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission in toto, that is payment of enhanced pay from January 1, 2006. Chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh has been maintaining that his government is ready to pay the enhanced salary from April this year, but does not have the money to pay from 2006. With Ibobi Singh, who is also the finance minister, firm on his stand, the employees gathered at John Stone higher secondary school here this afternoon and resolved to bring the essential services under the purview of the strike. L. Priyobarta Singh, the publicity secretary of the administrative council, said after the meeting, “The employees of the public health engineering department will also stop supplying drinking water soon as they are preparing to join the strike.” Veterinary employees will close the casualty section of the hospital run by the department and employees will start picketing offices where workers are yet to join the agitation, Singh added. The employees of the state secretariat are extending moral support to the ceasework.