Contractual employees of Psychiatric Hospital Srinagar without salaries, seek justice

Srinagar, May 21: The employees temporarily engaged as data entry operators and multi-purpose workers in Psychiatric Disease Hospital, Srinagar (IMHANS) under National Mental Health Program (NMHP) are without their earned salary and seek its release.
A delegation of employees said they were engaged under the NMHP scheme and have been working in the Department of Psychiatry & Drug De-addiction Centre SMHS hospital for the last 14 years.
“In August 2023, the Administrator and Principal of GMC Srinagar had tried to expel us from the department on the pretext of non-availability of funds,” they said.
After the move of GMC Srinagar, they went to court and brought a stay order from Jammu and Kashmir High Court and in January the hospital was directed by HC to pay the salary to petitioners but despite the passage of nine months, they haven’t received salary yet.
“Now the situation is such that we are suffering alot along with our families and children. Despite the court order we are not being paid the salary and some GMC higher officials want to issue a disengagement order on their own,” they said.
The 26 employees (data entry operators and multi-purpose workers) include 10 employees working since 2011 and 16 working from 2018.
“Most of the employees are now over aged and they do not even have money to buy pencils and copies for their children. What can we do, where can we go,” they said.
In April, the delegation said that they met Commissioner Secretary, Health and Medical Education (H&ME) Department, Dr Syed Abid Rasheed, who had then assured that their salaries will be released as per rules and on priority basis.
“Now we again request the Commissioner Secretary Health and Medical Education to kindly intervene in the matter and release our salary which is our right,” they said.
The employees had been receiving Rs 9,000 per month. They stated that their families have been facing tough times due to the non-payment of salaries since August 2023.
“We are performing technical duties. Before starting the scheme, the H&ME Department issued an order stating that if it halts funding in the 11th Plan, the state government will be responsible for providing the necessary funds and taking over the scheme,” they stated.
Notably, in 2009, the H&ME Department issued an order stating that employees appointed under the NMHP scheme would be absorbed by the state after the cessation of fund support.
“This order was endorsed by the Medical Superintendent in 2015 and they wrote to H&ME Department in 2015 and the same year the MS Psychiatric Hospital had written to Principal under dated 11.08.2015 that these employees will be taken over by the state. On all documents the High Court issued a stay order up to 2026,” they said.
On the other side, the 26 employees of the Psychiatry Dept. continue to perform their duties as per rosters at IMHANS and Drug De-Addiction Centre which run on their shoulders.
The Psychiatric Diseases Hospital was selected under Scheme-A of NMHP as a centre of excellence and funds under the same were provided for civil works and equipment.
Funds were also provided as “support for faculty and technical staff”. Due to extreme paucity of staff and the widening gulf between available staff and services provided, multipurpose workers and data entry operators were hired under this budget head.
Officials said this was a one-time scheme and had different heads including hiring technical manpower on contractual basis and they would get extension year after year.
Medical Superintendent, Psychiatric Disease Hospital, Dr Ajaz Ahmad said the budget under the scheme was spent in the hospital in a specific time period and the scheme has wound up.