Intern doctors in Gujarat have gone on strike because they have not been paid their Covid-19 allowance

On Thursday, at least 450 intern doctors from three civil hospitals affiliated with medical colleges administered by a Gujarat government-controlled entity went on strike indefinitely, claiming they had not been given the “Covid allowance” promised by the government.

The agitating intern doctors belong to medical colleges run by the Gujarat Medical Education and Research Society (GMERS) in Sola area of Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar and Valsad. After completing their MBBS course, medical students are required to undertake internships at hospitals before they are granted permission to start their own practice.

According to the agitating students, the state government had in April announced that intern doctors of government and GMERS-run medical colleges will get ₹5,000 as monthly Covid allowance over and above their stipend for the months of March till June for Covid-19 duty.

“While interns of the government-run colleges have received the allowance promised by the government, intern doctors of GMERS-run colleges were not given the sum. Although we made a representation to the authorities several times in the past, there was no positive response. Hence, 450 intern doctors of these three colleges have decided to go on an indefinite strike,” one of the interns said.