Hyderabad: Post-graduate students of the Nizamia Tibbi hospital have gone on a strike demanding stipends which are due for seven months. The services at the outpatient department have been suspended due to the strike.
Secretary Dr Mohammed Junaid of the Unani Students Association at the Nizamia Tibbi Hospital said, “The stipends have been due for the past seven months. Earlier it used to be credited every 3 months however this time, the gap has been too long. The stipends used to be on par with Allopathy. In 2016 it was Rs 23,000 per month and it has remained the same since then.”
In an order on January 9, 2023, the Telangana High Court directed the authorities to pay stipends within three months.
Despite the order, students said the stipends are not being paid. Now, the Nizamia Tibbi Hospital Union has filed a contempt case in the Supreme Court which has been listed for November.
The union had given a representation to Telangana health minister Damodar Rajanarsimha earlier in July and the Telangana health secretary regarding the payment of stipends. Since there was no response from the government the PG students went on a strike.
The secretary further said, “The issue has been raised with the Principal who sought a week to resolve the issue.” The students said they would wait for a week and would go on an indefinite strike.
