Chandigarh: Punjab Finance Minister Advocate Harpal Singh Cheema held a series of comprehensive meetings on Wednesday with various employee unions under the Health and Family Welfare Department to address the grievances of the state’s healthcare workforce.
Prioritising the working conditions of frontline staff, the Finance Minister issued immediate directives to both the Health and Family Welfare Department and the Rural Development and Panchayat Department. He mandated that adequate arrangements be made to facilitate Asha workers and facilitators by providing them with proper spaces, such as Panchayat Ghars or other suitable Panchayat buildings, to conduct vital vaccination drives on alternate days.
During the extensive deliberations, the Finance Minister took decisive steps to address the structural and administrative hurdles faced by the employees. He directed the Health Department to promptly formulate and submit a proposal to the cabinet sub-committee concerning the provision of casual leaves and other legitimate demands raised by the Asha workers and facilitators, ensuring that appropriate action is taken at the earliest.
The dialogue included crucial inputs from the All India Asha Workers and Facilitators Union, Asha Workers and Facilitator Union Punjab (CITU) and the Asha Workers and Facilitator Narol Union. Additionally, key systemic issues regarding equal pay and regularization were brought forward by the N.H.M. Employees Union, the Community Health Officers Association, the Pharmacy Officer’s Association, the Rural Health Pharmacy Officer Union, and the Health Pharmacy Officer Association Punjab.
