Jammu, March 25,: Medical employees at Government Medical College (GMC) Jammu continued their strike for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, staging a protest on the hospital premises over the deduction of 2.5 days’ salary.
The protest saw participation from a large number of employees, who raised slogans and held placards demanding justice and immediate release of the deducted wages.
The ongoing agitation has begun to impact patient care at the hospital, with services reported to be affected for the past two days as staff remained engaged in the protest.
The demonstration reflects growing discontent among healthcare workers, who say the salary deduction is unjustified and has been imposed without adequate explanation.
Arun Kumar Sharma, President of the Medical Employees Union at GMC and Associated Hospitals, told the news agency Kashmir News Trust that the protest would intensify if the government fails to respond.
“We are demanding the release of our 2.5 days’ salary which has been deducted. We work hard day in and day out, and still our wages have been cut,” Sharma said.
He warned that employees may escalate the agitation by taking to the streets if their demands are not met. “If the salary is not released, we will be forced to hit the roads, and the government will be responsible if patient care suffers,” he added.
Sharma also said that there has been no response from the government so far despite the ongoing protest.
Meanwhile, patients and attendants reported disruptions in routine services, highlighting the impact of the strike on hospital functioning.
Notably, a similar protest over the same demand was held earlier this month on March 12 at Government Medical College (GMC) Srinagar. [KNT]
