Medical interns strike for hike in stipend on

PUNE: The indefinite strike by medical interns across the state seeking a hike in stipend entered the fifth day on Sunday.

About 2,500 medical interns — medical degree (MBBS) students doing a year-long internship after completing the four year course — have been on strike since June 13. These students are from 18 state government-run medical colleges across Maharashtra. Of them, about 180 medical interns are from the B J Medical College and Sassoon General Hospital here.

“The state government had pledged to increase our monthly stipend from Rs 6,000 to Rs 11,000 in 2015. But nothing has happened since then. The medical interns pay a significant role in patient care, but the state government has been indifferent to our demands,” said Ketan Deshmukh, president of the Association of State Medical Interns’ (ASMI), Pune branch.The year-long internship is a mandatory part of the medical degree curriculum.“Our strike will continue till we get a written assurance from the government. We will meet medical education minster Girish Mahajan on June 19. We hope that the meeting will be fruitful,” Deshmukh said.He, however, clarified that the interns have not stopped rendering emergency medical services at the hospitals.“We may have stopped doing other medical work, but can’t stay away from emergency services.We are also doing society-oriented activities such as holding blood donation camps for patients and carrying out cleanliness drive on hospital premises,” Deshmukh said.
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