Resident doctors of NDMC hospitals protest at Jantar Mantar, hold candlelight march

Resident doctors of a few North Corporation-run hospitals, who are currently agitating over their pending salaries, held a joint protest at Jantar Mantar here and a candlelight march on Friday to press for their demands.

Wearing masks, doctors from Hindu Rao Hospital, Kasturba Hospital and Rajen Babu Tuberculosis Hospital, held placards and raised slogans.

The Aam Aadmi Party which has been backing these protests, in a statement, claimed that its members had also joined the march.

Abhimanyu Sardana, president of RDA of Hindu Rao Hospital, when asked if they had joined, said the protesting doctors were "seeking a solution more than involvement of any political party".

"It's still heartwarming to know their (AAP's) extension of support to our voice and their involvement as a public representative so that it can be voiced out to maximum audience and maybe that could give a better solution to our agony," he said.

Representatives of their RDAs said no resolution seems to be in sight to the issue so the protest happened at Jantar Mantar.

Scores of doctors had gathered there to protest and demand their due salaries.

Later in the evening, they held a candlelight march, starting from Jantar Mantar.

"We want our due salaries, else we can't work like this. Some solution has to be found," Sardana said.

"The RDA on behalf of all residents would be happy if all political parties can sit under one roof and address the issue amicably. If no one is paying heed to our issues and a public representative can escalate the issue, then we would be glad, irrespective of the inclination," he said.

The members of the Resident Doctors' Association of the Hindu Rao Hospital have been protesting for the past several days and had gone on an indefinite strike, seeking release of salaries due for the past three months.

Since Wednesday, resident doctors of the Kasturba Hospital are on a week-long strike over their pending salaries too.

"The RDA of Hindu Rao Hospital stands in solidarity with the RDA of Kasturba Hospital and RDA of Rajen Babu TB Hospital in the ongoing agitation on the grounds of non-payment of salaries for almost four months. We cumulatively would like to state that there hasn't been any resolution to our issues regarding the aforementioned," the RDA of Hindu Rao Hospital had said in a statement on Thursday.

"Therefore, we all NDMC residents would like to join hands on a common platform to demonstrate our agitation validating our affliction with the administration due to strict non-compliance" it said.

North Delhi Mayor Jai Prakash in a tweet late Wednesday night had claimed, "Today, salaries released of all doctors, nurses, paramedics and group C and D staff and for the rest it will be released soon."

Prakash, when contacted, said salary has been released for "month of July".

The crisis over pending salaries of doctors of North Delhi Municipal Corporation-run hospitals had deepened on Wednesday as an association of permanent medics of civic-run hospitals also threatened that its members will go on an indefinite strike from October 19 if their demands were not met, including release of pending salaries.

The BJP, which controls the NDMC and ruling AAP have sought to blame each other for the situation.

"We doctor have become football among various parties," said a protesting doctor, who did not wish to be identified.

"Entire medical fraternity and all the hospitals of Delhi should unite and extend support to these striking doctors who are demanding basic rights and need," AIIMS RDA president Adarsh Pratap Singh said, expressing solidarity with protesting doctors.