108 Ambulance employees begin phased agitation in State

Employees of the 108 ambulance service in Jharkhand continued their phased agitation for the second consecutive day on Tuesday, wearing black badges to protest against what they described as the government’s failure to act on their long-pending demands.

The Jharkhand Pradesh Ambulance Employees’ Union alleged that despite repeatedly raising their concerns, the government and the concerned department had not initiated any meaningful dialogue with the employees. The union said emergency ambulance services were not being disrupted during the protest, but accused the authorities of consistently ignoring their grievances.

The employees have primarily demanded that the 108 ambulance service be operated through the government at the district level, reinstatement of workers who were removed from service and implementation of all statutory benefits, including EPF, ESI, overtime, gratuity and minimum wages.

Union state president Neeraj Tiwari said ambulance workers had never shied away from serving patients and had continued to perform their duties during emergencies. However, he said the employees’ patience was now being tested.

Tiwari appealed to the government to initiate talks with the union at the earliest and find a solution to the issues.

The union has announced further phases of the agitation. A candle march will be held on September 19, followed by begging for alms as a form of protest on September 21 and a demonstration on September 23.

The union has also announced a statewide one-day complete strike on September 25, during which employees will stage a protest outside the National Health Mission (NHM) office at Namkum in Ranchi.

The union warned that if its demands are not addressed, all 108 ambulance employees across Jharkhand will go on an indefinite strike from September 28.

The employees maintained that their protest was aimed at securing their employment rights and welfare while ensuring that emergency medical services continued uninterrupted during the ongoing agitation.