Bhopal, February 3:At least 202 nurses were arrested and 14 suspended here Thursday after they refused to call off their strike despite the Madhya Pradesh government invoking the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) to prevent any disruption of health services in the state.
The striking nurses have threatened to resign en masse Friday if their demands for a hike in salary and other benefits are not met.
Around 3,500 nurses of five medical colleges – one each in Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior, Jabalpur and Rewa districts – are on an indefinite strike since Wednesday.
The Principal Secretary of Health Education Indranil Shankar Daani has instructed all deans to give a 24-hour ultimatum to all the striking nurses, the health department said in a press release.
The principal secretary also ordered them to dismiss the nurses on strike after the 24-hour deadline.
The nurses are demanding benefits of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations, raising their retirement age to 65 years and increasing the stipend given to trainee nurses.
The state government invoked ESMA Tuesday night.
Apart from those arrested, fourteen nurses in Gwalior, Jabalpur, Bhopal and Indore were suspended. Among them was president of the Madhya Pradesh Nurses Association Rekha Parmar.
“We have suspended seven nurses from our medical college. And action will be taken soon on the others too,” dean of the Gajara Raja Medical College in Gwalior Dr. Kamal Bhadoria said.
The press release also claimed that 74 nurses had returned to work and alternative arrangements had been made to lessen the impact of the strike on patients.
–IANS