Bhubaneswar, (Reporterspen), Sept 25: (Nursing staff) Despite the Odisha Emergency Services (Maintenance) Act (ESMA) being in effect, nursing staff at state-run hospitals and healthcare centers in Odisha initiated a two-day agitation on Wednesday to demand the implementation of their 10-point charter.
Key demands include the regularization of contractual workers and the abolition of outsourcing practices. Sources indicate that, aside from emergency services, the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), and Operating Theatres (OT), nurses have halted other hospital operations.
Organized under the banner of the Odisha Nursing Employees’ Association (ONEA), the nurses have warned of a complete work stoppage beginning September 27 if their demands remain unaddressed.
In response, Health Minister Mukesh Mahaling expressed optimism about reaching a resolution through dialogue. “We have invited them for discussions regarding their issues. I am confident that the talks will be fruitful and that healthcare services will not be disrupted,” he stated to the media.
It’s important to note that the Odisha government invoked ESMA for six months on August 6, which prohibits strikes by class-III and class-IV employees in the health sector to prevent disruptions in medical services, following ONEA’s initial threats of agitation from August 27.
