Indus Valley Times

Nurses, pharmacists and paramedics can no longer resort to strikes

By Nalini Sahu

Bhubaneswar, April 18: In a significant development, the Odisha government on Monday invoked the Essential Services Maintenance (ESMA) Act to prohibit strikes by nurses, pharmacists, paramedics and others in order to ensure that medical services across the state are not disrupted.

The state government’s move is seen as an attempt to ensure seamless health services to the people as the number of Covid-19 cases rises. With 26 new positives reported in the last 48 hours, the number of active Covid-19 cases reached 136.

As per the latest notification issued by the Home (Special Section) Department, it is necessary to prohibit strikes in the form of cessation of work by nurses, pharmacists, paramedics and other Class III and IV employees, including contractual employees in services connected with maintenance of medical services in the government hospitals and dispensaries in district headquarter hospitals, sub-divisional hospitals and others.

Those staff working at Community Health Centre (CHC), Primary Health Centres (PHCs), municipality hospitals, ESI hospitals, medical colleges and hospitals, specifically Acharya Harihar Regional Cancer Centre (AHRCC), Cuttack; Regional Spinal Injury Centre and Police hospitals are also covered under the prohibition.

“As per Section 2 (b) of the Odisha Essential Services (Maintenance) Act 1988, cessation of work by a body of persons employed in any essential service acting in combination or a concerted refusal or refusal under a common understanding of any number of persons who are or have been so employed to continue to work or to accept employment and includes unauthorised absence from duty in pursuance of a common understanding among the persons who unauthorisedly absent themselves from duty or under the direction of any other person or persons,” the notification read.

“In exercise of the power conferred by sub-section (1) of section 3 read with section 2 of the Odisha Essential Services (Maintenance) Act 1988 (Odisha Act 9 of 1992), the state government do hereby prohibit strikes in the aforesaid services. The order shall remain in force for a period of six months with effect from the date of issue,” the notification added.