TARN TARAN: Venting their anger against the AAP government's dithering to restore pay parity of Veterinary Doctors with Medical doctors, Veterinary doctors from across the state under aegis of 'Joint Action Committee (JAC) of Vets for pay parity, ' here today, took out a massive protest march and staged a state-level 'sit-in', ahead of the by-election.
Veterinary Officers, Senior Veterinary Officers, Assistant Directors, Deputy Directors, and Retired Veterinary Doctors from every district of the state attended the protest in large numbers.
Leaders of the Joint Action Committee of Vets for Pay-Parity present at the site stated that their main demands are the restoration of Pay-Parity with Medical Officers, which has been in place for the past 42 years, and the reinstatement of the 4, 9, 14 Dynamic Assured Career Progression (DACP) scheme.
During his address, the JAC Convener Dr. Gurcharan Singh accused the government of breaking a historical precedent, stating that "from 1978 to 2020, the salaries of Veterinary and Medical Officers were always equal. However, in January 2021, the previous government made an unfortunate decision, disregarding the orders of the Hon'ble Punjab and Haryana High Court and the Supreme Court of India, and service rules, by reducing the basic pay of Veterinary Doctors from ₹56, 100 to ₹47, 600".
Dr Gurcharan Singh questioned why the current Aam Aadmi Party government has not restored the 42-year-old Pay-Parity, which was deceitfully taken away by the former Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal four and a half years ago, even after nearly three and three-quarter years in power. "Will the government still adhere to Manpreet Badal's mindset?"
He asserted that the large number of Veterinary Doctors who enthusiastically attended this protest is a strong message to the government that the Vets of Punjab will not rest until their demands are met. The government's slow and delaying tactics regarding their demands are now baseless. This dharna is a message to Chief Minister S Bhagwant Singh Mann that he should immediately intervene and resolve the demands of the Veterinary Doctors of Punjab.
The Co-Conveners Dr. Puneet Malhotra and Dr. Abdul Majid said that in many institutions, including Chandigarh, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Odisha, the Central Government, the Indian Army, and BSF etc, Veterinary Officers are being given the same salary and facilities as Medical Officers. Under these circumstances, Punjab is the only laggard state where this disparity has persisted since 2021. They added that there have been several meetings with the government over the past two years, and assurances were given, but no notification has been issued yet to end this disparity.
Media Advisor of the Joint Action Committee of Vets for Pay-Parity, Dr. Gurinder Singh Walia, lamented that the government has left no option for the educated class of Veterinary Doctors, who diagnose and treat the illnesses of animals who can't express, but to come out on the streets for ignoring their legitimate demands by the government.