NHM United Forum Seeks Job Regularisation, Equal Pay from Unakoti DM
The Unakoti district committee of NHM United Forum submitted a 14-point charter of demands to Unakoti District Magistrate Megha Jain on Tuesday, seeking job regularisation, equal pay for equal work and social security benefits for nearly 2,500 National Health Mission (NHM) employees working across Tripura.
Unakoti: The Unakoti district committee of NHM United Forum submitted a 14-point charter of demands to Unakoti District Magistrate Megha Jain on Tuesday, seeking job regularisation, equal pay for equal work and social security benefits for nearly 2,500 National Health Mission (NHM) employees working across Tripura.
The delegation urged the administration to take steps to ensure professional dignity, financial rights and long-term job security for NHM employees. The delegation included district president Rimi Chowdhury, district secretary Nabendu Chakraborty, vice-president Biswababu Singha, joint secretary Raju Bhowmik and other members of the Unakoti district committee.
In the memorandum submitted to the District Magistrate, the representatives highlighted the continuous contribution of NHM employees to the state's healthcare system, particularly at the grassroots level. They pointed out that despite performing crucial responsibilities in healthcare delivery, these employees have long been facing uncertainty regarding job security, appropriate pay structures and social protection.
Among their principal demands are regularisation of all NHM employees through the formulation of an appropriate policy, implementation of equal pay for equal work at par with government employees, and the introduction of a comprehensive and uniform Human Resource (HR) Policy.
Emphasising social and financial security, the forum also demanded Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) benefits, comprehensive health insurance coverage, Dearness Allowance (DA), gratuity of up to Rs 20 lakh and financial assistance under the Die-in-Harness scheme.
Other demands include the integration of Performance-Based Incentives (PBI) for Community Health Officers (CHOs) into their basic salaries, experience-based bonuses, and the introduction of Child Care Leave (CCL) for women employees.
The organisation has also called for an increase in the retirement age to 70 years and the extension of the proposed benefits of the 8th Pay Commission to NHM employees. According to the forum, implementing these demands is essential to ensuring long-term professional stability and financial security for the large workforce engaged in the state's healthcare system.
Following the submission of the deputation, the representatives expressed hope that the administration would take positive steps at the earliest, keeping in view the professional dignity and future security of thousands of NHM employees working across Tripura.
Copies of the charter of demands have also been forwarded to the Secretary of the state's Health and Family Welfare Department, the Mission Director of the National Health Mission and other senior officials for their information and consideration.
The forum believes that addressing the demands for job security, fair remuneration and social protection of NHM employees, who have been playing an important role in healthcare delivery for years, could also bring significant improvements to human resource management in the state's healthcare sector.