After private Covid hosp closure, contract health workers seek jobs

SNS, SILLGURI, 1 MARCH 21 : Contractual health workers, who had been engaged at Dr Chhang's Super Specialty Hospital after the health department requisitioned it for the treatment of patients suffering from Covid -19, staged a demonstration here today, demanding reappointment.

According to the workers, more than 30 persons from different districts of the state like Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Malda, Nadia and Howrah districts working as nursing staff, technicians, ward boys, sanitary attendants and others, including administrative work, at the hospital have now been rendered jobless after the government shifted the treatment Covid facility to the North Bengal Medical College andl Hospital(NBMCH) last month.

"We had applied for jobs after seeing the advertisements and had been working at the hospital from different times last year. We came to know on 25 February that the Covid treatment facility has been shifted to the NBMCH. With this move, we have now become jobless, and we are demanding reappoint ment," said a nursing staff and a resident of Shiv Mandir in Siliguri, Abhijit Bhowmik.

Some of them also claimed that they did not receive full salary from January.

They staged a sit-in, closing the main gate of the office of the Siliguri Mahakuma Parishad, which also houses the office of the Darjeeling district chief medical officer of health (CMOH). CMOH Dr Pralay Acharya, who was not present there, said many of them had been appointed on a monthly contract basis.

"They had been engaged for voluntary service in view of the pandemic. Many of them had been taken on monthly basis. The health department published many advertisements for the jobs," Dr Acharya said.

Covid-19 vaccination at private hospitals

Covid-19 innoculation for two groups of people (aged over 60 and those with comorbidities) under the second phase of the immunization is likely to be launched at private health facilities from tomorrow. The same started at four centres at three government facilities--two at the NBMCH, and one each at the Siliguri District Hospital and Darjeeling District Hospital today. The district health department held a meeting with representatives of those hospitals today.

Sources said at least three nursing homes functioning as Covid Vaccination Centres (CVC) will also cover the second phase of the vaccination programme. There are government CVCs in the district.

Covid-19 vaccines are being given free of cost at government hospitals, while people will need to pay Rs 250 for the same at the private facilities. Officials said Rs 150 was for the vaccine and Rs 100 will be taken as service charge.

"We want to ramp up the Covid-vaccination capacity. More than 31,000 healthcare workers and frontline workers have been vaccinated in the district so far. Private hospitals have been asked to vaccinate at least 200 people per session. Registrations will be accepted from all people who have attained the age of 60 years or above as on 1 January, 2022, and those aged between 45 and 59 on I January, 2022," said a senior health department official.

Eligible persons may register via the CoWin 2.0 portal or may seek spot registrations using any of the photo IDs.

Dr Acharya said they were planning to increase the number of government vaccination sites.

At the same time, efforts are being made to launch the vaccination drive for those two groups initially at three private hospitals from tomorrow. later, the number of those facilities will also be increased. We have also planned to increase the number of government vaccination sites," he said.