Underpaid: Hospital services to be suspended in G-B today

All hospital services, except emergencies and operation theatres will remain suspended.

GILGIT: Doctors in Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) will observe a strike from today (Wednesday) in protest against low salary packages.

“The strike will be observed across Gilgit-Baltistan,” Dr Abdul Rahbar said in a press conference on Tuesday.

The strike was called after the government failed to address their demands of bringing salaries and perks at par with doctors employed by the federal government. For the past couple of weeks, doctors were on a token strike and wore black ribbons around their arms during duty hours as a symbol of protest.

“This is our right. We deserve pay packages similar to what doctors working under the federal government get,” said Rahbar, who heads the G-B chapter of the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA).

Dr Tajamul Hussain and other office bearers were in attendance at the press conference.



Unveiling their plans, they said most hospital services, except emergency and operation theatres will remain suspended during the period of the strike. “Those violating it would be penalised under our rules,” Rahbar said, urging his fellow doctors in the region to comply.

The doctors referred to their meetings with officials of the regional government and said Chief Minister Mehdi Shah had assured them of fulfilling their demands. “Regrettably, he failed to deliver,” he said.

Earlier, while talking to journalists in Gilgit, the chief minister said despite limited resources, his government had increased salaries to bring them at par with doctors in Punjab. “We are still working on it to ensure the packages are acceptable to doctors in the region,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 8^th, 2014.