The contract workers who are serving as sweepers, cleaners and others in Bokaro General Hospital (BGH) have gone on an indefinite strike demanding to restore the ESI facility for them, which was suspended due to non-payment of the contractor for the past four months. The negotiation talks initiated by BGH management failed to pacify the issue.
The protestors on Friday staged a demonstration in front of the office of executive director (ED) of BGH under the banner of Jai Jharkhand Majdoor Samaj (JJMS). JJMS is a wing of ruling party Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). However, the issue has bagged political colour as JMM city president, Mantu Yadav with cadres holding party flags also sat on the dharna.
The strike of sweepers has however affected cleanliness in the BGH as garbage and medical wastes were not removed in many wards. BGH sources said that there were about 200 patients admitted in different wards while 14 positive patients are in Covid ward and critical care unit. BGH run by Bokaro Steel Plant (BSL) is a unit of Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and a dedicated Covid-19 Care Centre. The workers were agitated since the past few months as their contractors are not paying them ESI, provident funds, Earned Leave (EL) and bonuses. Things worsened on Thursday when a sweeper Gopal Dome who is ailing from kidney disease is facing difficulty in getting better treatment due to lack of ESI.
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