104 Service employees resume duties

Vijayawada: Nearly 1,600 contract employees who are working under the Chandranna Sanchara Chikitsa Kendras, CSCKs, (formerly known as 104 Services), resumed duties across the state on Saturday after boycotting the duties since April 17. 

The contract employees have been demanding payment of salaries as per the G.O. 151. So far, the drivers, pharmacists, lab technicians and security guards working under the ChandrannaSancharaChikitsaKendras (CSCKs) are getting less salaries compared to the staff working in the Primary Health Centres (PHCs). The union leaders of the 104 Services participated in the discussions with the five-member committee appointed by the State Government at the Secretariat on April 26 to resolve the issues. 
The officials have asked the contract employees to call off the strike by Saturday to resume the talks on Monday. 

Consequently, the contract staff called off the strike and attended duty on Saturday. The employees attended duties on 280-odd mobile clinics across the State. 
Now, the drivers and nurses of contract staff are drawing salaries of Rs.10,650 per month, pharmacists and lab assistants are drawing salary of 10,550 and security guards are getting Rs.6,900 per month. 

On the other hand, the same staff working in the Primary Health Centres are drawing more salaries, said V R Phani Kumar, working president of the Andhra Pradesh 104 Contract Employees Union. He said that earlier, 2,300 contract employees were working under the 104 Services. But, the government has transferred 600 staff in April 2016 to PHCs and paying salary of Rs15,000 to Data Entry operators, Rs17,500 to Lab Technicians and Pharmacists. 

But, the demands of the employees of 104 Services were ignored by the government for payment of salary under G.O.151 on par with Primary Health Centres. Now, the CSCK staff have been demanding salary of  Rs17,500 per month on par with the staff working in Primary Health Centres. There is a difference of Rs.7,000 salary for the lab technicians and pharmacists working in 104 vehicles and Primary Health Centres, said K Raja Sekhar, union leader. 

He said that gross injustice is done to the 104 Services contract employees. A five-member teamvisits two or three villages every day to render medical services to the villagers. He made it clear that the staff would continue agitation if the Government did not concede to their just demands. The union leaders are waiting for a call from the Department of Medical and Health for the talks to be held on Monday, he added.