Patients who visited municipal hospitals for treatment on Saturday were for shock. About 50,000 municipal employees working in the health sector are on indefinite strike, agitating against the corporation for not paying their salaries for the last three months.

All the doctors, municipal-based dispensaries, maternity home, polyclinic, para-medical staff, technicians and four major hospitals of civic agencies — including Bara Hindu Rao, Swami Dayanand, Kasturba and Rajan Babu Tuberculosis hospital — have halted their medical services till the corporation release their salary.

Speaking to The Pioneer, Dr RR Gautam of Hindu Rao Hospital, president of Municipal Corporation Doctors' Association, said, “For the past one year, we are facing the same problem to get our salary on time. Every time, we doctors have to agitate to get our payment. Now, we want final and concrete answer from the Government and this can only be done by unification of all three corporations and timely payment of MCD employees.”

Showing concern towards patients who are suffering to avail medical treatment, Dr Gautam said, “We really apologise for the inconvenience caused to the patients during the strike.” A senior doctor at Hindu Rao Hospital said, “On Saturday, only emergency patients were given medical aid and regular cases were sent back.”

It may be noted that the MCD’s biggest Bara Hindu Rao hospital caters to more than 10,000 patients in its OPDs per day which had shut down its medical services.

Around 1.5 lakh MCD employees, including doctors, nurses, engineers, teachers, technicians, sanitation workers and other class III and IV staff, who have not been paid salaries for up to three months, are on indefinite strike demanding for the release of their salaries.