The protest by the Unemployed COVID Warriors Nurses Union outside Punjab Health Minister Balbir Singh’s residence intensified on Monday, with Youth Congress district president Sanjeev Sharma Kalu extending his support to their demand for regularisation of services.
The protesters raised slogans against the Punjab Government and burnt an effigy of the Health Minister, alleging that promises made to them had not been honoured by the state. The nurses, who had served on the frontlines during the COVID-19 pandemic, have been protesting with their family members in the sweltering heat, demanding that the Punjab Government fulfil its commitment to provide them permanent employment.
Addressing the gathering, Kalu said it was unfortunate that nurses who had risked their lives to serve the public during the pandemic were being compelled to agitate for their rights. He urged the Punjab Government to immediately accept the nurses’’ demands and regularise their services, warning that the agitation would intensify if the issue was not resolved.
On the occasion, nurse activist Charanjot Kaur recalled that on January 3, 2022, when COVID warriors were on a hunger strike at Rajindra Hospital, leaders of the AAP, including CM Bhagwant Mann, had assured them that their services would be regularised once the party came to power. However, she alleged that despite those assurances, the nurses were still fighting for their rights.
Kalu questioned the state government’’s commitment towards women, stating that a government which talked about respecting mothers and daughters should not ignore women healthcare workers seeking justice and job security.
