PGI’s sanitation workers protest for demands

The PGIMER Safai Karamchari Union held a three-hour protest outside Kairon Block on Thursday, voicing their grievances against the “prolonged delay” by the hospital administration in addressing their demands.

Union president Pankaj Sachan, along with adviser Tejpal, went on a hunger strike during the protest. At 1 pm, a meeting of the committee, constituted under the chairmanship of the medical superintendent, was called to discuss the union’s demands.

The hunger strike was called off after the PGIMER administration sought one week to consider their demands, including implementation of the third cadre, reclassification of sanitary attendant as hospital attendant, designation of workers with pay grade ₹1,800 and ₹1,900 as medical record technicians similar to AIIMS, implementation of pay anomaly from 2006, creation of grade 1 supervisors, increment in uniform expenses from 2017 with direct disbursement to workers’ accounts, the appointment of sanitary workers in grade II instead of grade III, conducting examinations for sanitary workers in both Hindi and English, and immediate granting of jobs on compensation grounds.

Sachan said, “The hospital administration’s apathy compelled me to resort to a hunger strike. Authorities have requested a week’s time to consider our demands and assured of a meeting thereafter. So, we ended our hunger strike. But if our demands are not met, we will escalate our protest.”