: The tussle between the Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi Government and the BJP-ruled municipal corporations is about to get worse, with the government planning to take over municipal hospitals.
The AAP Government is looking at running the hospitals at a time the municipal corporations have been hit by a financial crisis and have been unable to pay doctors, nurses and other staff for months.
A delegation of about 60 doctors of the Municipal Corporation Doctors Association of Delhi met Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday, seeking a solution to the problem of late salary payments.
Though the corporations come under the Union Home Ministry, the Delhi Government is responsible for disbursing funds to the civic bodies. Mr. Kejriwal assured the doctors, who have not been paid their salaries for March and April that the government would make sure they are paid in a week.
“We will take over all the municipal corporation hospitals, but that will take time. Till then, we will make arrangements for the salaries,” said Mr. Kejriwal.
The doctors of the North Delhi Municipal Corporation’s Bara Hindu Rao and Kasturba hospitals have been on strike for a few days. The president of the association, Dr. R.R. Gautam, said, “Services in the OPD and wards have been affected, but emergency facilities are working. We don’t want to inconvenience the patients, but we had to take this step.”
Dr. Gautam added that the salaries for February were only disbursed after a similar agitation.
“The Chief Minister told us though the municipal corporations are not under him, he will do everything possible to resolve the situation. He assured us that we will get salaries in seven days,” said Dr. Gautam.
A Delhi Government spokesman refused to comment on whether there was a proposal to take over the hospitals. Health Minister Satyendra Jain told The Hindu , the demand for taking over the hospitals was made by the public and doctors at the hospital.
“Ever since our government was formed the people have been demanding the takeover and the government will look into it,” he added. He also said that the public wanted it as they felt that the MCD was most competent to run it.
municipal corporations have been unable to pay salaries to the staff
