Patients continued to face inconvenience for the second consecutive day after nurses at major municipal corporation-run hospitals in the national capital launched an indefinite strike on Monday.
The striking nurses are demanding recruitment of new staff to deal with the crunch and clearance of pending promotions. Among the hospitals where nurses have gone on strike include Bara Hindu Rao Hospital, Swami Dayanand Hospital, Kasturba Hospital and Rajan Babu TB Hospital.
“We have raised these issues several times with the municipal corporation. Nurses have repeatedly requested the authorities concerned to look into these issues.”
“The administration has not responded. We have launched an indefinite strike from Monday. Promotions for nurses who have been in the department for years are still pending. How can we continue to work under such conditions ” Delhi Nurses Union president Sushma Kumari said.
A senior nurse at Rajan Babu TB Hospital said, “Patients are facing inconvenience; the administration should initiate negotiations to settle the issues. There is acute staff shortage and the administration should take stock of the situation.”
Meanwhile, authorities said that more nurses have been pressed into service recently and the administration is looking into the demands of the nurses. “We will talk to the striking nurses on Wednesday and asks them to join work for the larger public interest. We are ready to consider their demand,” North Delhi Municipal Corporation mayor Ravinder Gupta said.
