TN contract nurses’ strike enters fifth day, Health Minister offers assurances on regularisation, benefits

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Chennai, Dec 22 (IANS) The impasse between the Tamil Nadu government and protesting contract nurses continued on Monday, even as Health and Family Welfare Minister Ma Subramanian held a fresh round of negotiations and announced several measures aimed at addressing their long-standing demands.

With the agitation entering its fifth consecutive day, representatives of the Tamil Nadu Nurses Development Association met the Minister at the Tamil Nadu Dr MGR Medical University in Guindy.

Senior Health Department officials, including Secretary P. Senthilkumar, also participated in the discussions.

Addressing the media after the meeting, Subramanian said several “legitimate demands” raised by the nurses were being examined with empathy and seriousness. He noted that since the DMK assumed office, 3,614 contract nurses had already been regularised.

“The Chief Minister has asked us to study all justified demands and take appropriate action,” he said.

Among the key announcements was the creation of 750 new nursing posts, for which appointment orders would be issued before Pongal.

Of these, 724 positions would be reserved for those who served during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Additionally, the Health Minister said that permanent orders would soon be issued to 169 nurses who have already completed the required service conditions.

On maternity benefits — a major sticking point for the protesters, Subramanian said the government is actively considering extending paid maternity leave to MRB and consolidated-pay nurses.

He also revealed that a government order establishing nursing colleges at government medical college hospitals is in the pipeline.

The minister criticised the MRB recruitment system introduced in 2014–15 during the previous AIADMK regime, terming it flawed and inadequate.

“This government does not merely promise in its manifesto; it ensures implementation,” he stated.

Despite the assurances, protesting nurses refrained from calling off their agitation immediately, saying they would consult their leadership before deciding the next step.

The ongoing protest dates back to December 18, when contract nurses launched a hunger strike on Sivanantha Salai with a 10-point charter of demands, including equal pay for equal work and permanent appointments for all consolidated-pay nurses.

After being removed from the site and dropped at the Kilambakkam bus terminus, the nurses continued their protest there, later shifting to a sit-in near the primary health centre at Guduvancheri.

The fate of the protest now hinges on the unions’ response to the government’s fresh assurances.

–IANS

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Congress must apologise for insulting Baba Saheb Ambedkar: Vijender Gupta

New Delhi, Dec 24 (IANS) Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly Vijender Gupta on Tuesday sought to expose Congress’ alleged hypocrisy and its so-called disrespectful attitude towards Baba Saheb Ambedkar, accusing the grand old party of mocking and humiliating the Dalit icon.

Addressing media persons, Gupta said, “The Congress party, which consistently disrespected, ridiculed, and shamed Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar, is now pretending to claim his legacy. Congress’ mindset has always been anti-Ambedkar. The party must offer an unconditional apology to the nation for the insults inflicted upon Baba Saheb by its leaders, especially Pandit Nehru.”

Gupta pointed out, “Usually when a minister resigns, he is given the opportunity to speak on the floor of the House. However, Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar was not allowed to speak after his resignation.”

In his resignation letter, Ambedkar wrote extensively against Pandit Nehru. Highlighting his letter, Gupta stated that Baba Saheb mentioned, “I was well-educated in finance and industry, but I was not assigned any related department. I was not made a member of any parliamentary committee. Instead, I was given the Law Ministry but was not allowed to work honestly. I was obstructed in completing the Hindu Code Bill.”

“The government cared only about Muslims, not providing adequate protection for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST). The Prime Minister’s focus remained dedicated to the Muslim community. I have no objection to the protections offered to Muslims but does only the Muslim community need protection in this country?” wrote Dr Ambedkar, according to Gupta.

Gupta claimed that Congress deliberately hid Ambedkar’s resignation letter from the public. “Had the letter been made public, Nehru’s image would have suffered significantly. Congress needs to explain why it kept Ambedkar’s resignation a secret. This betrayal reveals the deep disrespect of the Congress party towards Ambedkar.”

The BJP leader said, “Nehru harboured complete indifference towards Ambedkar. In a letter to Dr B.C. Roy, Nehru wrote, ‘Ambedkar’s resignation will have no effect.’ How can Congress, which consistently displayed contempt towards Ambedkar, now talk about respecting his rights?”

Gupta remarked, “Congress’ attempts to hold press conferences against the BJP ring hollow, as this is the same party that hindered Ambedkar from becoming a member of the Constituent Assembly and forced him to resign from the Law Ministry.”

Referring to historical records, he said, “After Ambedkar’s resignation, Nehru wrote a letter to Edwina Mountbatten expressing his happiness about Ambedkar leaving the Cabinet. With such thinking, Congress has no moral authority to talk about honouring Ambedkar today.”

The BJP leader added, “The evidence of Congress’ misbehaviour and disrespect towards Ambedkar is undeniable, and the party must apologise to the nation unconditionally.”

The BJP, Gupta said, respects all individuals who have contributed honestly to building the nation, irrespective of ideological differences. Contrastingly, the Congress glorifies only one family, ignoring stalwarts like Sardar Patel, Maulana Azad, and Ambedkar. Gupta emphasised the BJP’s acknowledgement of Ambedkar’s contributions and criticised Rahul Gandhi for continuing the charade of respecting Ambedkar while carrying Congress’ legacy of undermining him.

–IANS

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Andhra CID begins probe into Tirumala Parakamani theft case

Tirupati, Oct 14 (IANS) The Crime Investigation Department (CID) of Andhra Pradesh, on Tuesday, began a probe into the Parakamani theft case at Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple in Tirumala.

A CID team led by CID Director General Ravi Shankar Ayyanar began the probe into the case that dates back to 2023.

The team visited Parakamani (coins and currency notes counting centre) at the famous hill shrine and seized the records pertaining to the case registered at Tirumala One Town Police Station.

The CID team launched the probe a day after the Andhra Pradesh High Court pulled up the police department and the DGP for not implementing its orders on the petition challenging the closure of the Parakamani theft case in the Lok Adalat.

The theft had occurred in March 2023. C. Ravi Kumar, an employee of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD), was caught while stealing 920 dollars from Parakamani.

Recently, a petition was filed in the Andhra Pradesh High Court stating that there was no investigation in the theft case. The then-governing board of TTD had closed the case after a settlement in the Lok Adalat. The petitioner had challenged the closure of the case.

Last month, the High Court directed the Inspector General of CID to seize all records pertaining to the case, proceedings before the Lok Adalat and draft resolutions by the TTD board, if any, and submit the same in a sealed cover.

The CID filed a petition for modification of orders to include either a SP or DG rank officer for the seizure of case records, as there was no IGP rank cadre in the CID.

When the matter came up for hearing on Monday (October 13), Justice Gannamaneni Ramakrishna Prasad expressed his displeasure in strong words. He asked why the CID waited till October 6 to file a petition for modification when the order was passed on September 16.

Last month, two members of the TTD Trust Board released a video purportedly of the theft case.

The TTD board member and BJP State spokesperson, G. Bhanuprakash Reddy and TTD Ex-Officio member C. Divakar Reddy released the CCTV footage from the surveillance cameras fixed at Parakamani.

Ravi Kumar had allegedly swindled away currency notes by concealing them in his undergarments on April 29, 2023.

The TTD Board members alleged that he was caught in the act of stealing 11,300 dollars, but the FIR showed recovery of only 900 dollars.

They also alleged that the accused had amassed properties worth Rs 100 crore by stealing wads of foreign currency notes several times in the past.

The theft case registered at the Tirumala police station was shifted to the Lok Adalat, where a compromise settlement formula was reached in September 2023 after Ravi Kumar volunteered to donate seven properties worth Rs 40 crore, all of them located in Tirupati and Chennai, in the name of the TTD.

–IANS

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Congress in Kerala: Same diagnosis, different actors — will prognosis change?

Thiruvananthapuram, March 4 (IANS) After last week’s high-level meeting in Delhi, the Congress party in Kerala appears to have settled into a temporary calm. But if history is any indicator, such lulls have been a recurring theme in the party for nearly five decades.

The fundamental diagnosis remains unchanged — internal factionalism — only the actors keep changing. The key question now is whether the latest intervention by the party high command will lead to a different prognosis.

For over 50 years, the Congress in Kerala has been defined by factional rivalries. In the 1970s, the party was divided between the camps led by K. Karunakaran and A.K. Antony, with Antony at one point breaking away to join hands with the CPI(M). However, by the early 1980s, Antony returned, and the divide persisted — now with Oommen Chandy leading Antony’s faction.

By the 1990s, new factions emerged. Ramesh Chennithala and G. Karthikeyan formed the “reformist” group, while Vayalar Ravi led another breakaway faction. As Karunakaran aged, his son K. Muraleedharan entered state politics, and by the turn of the century, Oommen Chandy had solidified his position as the most powerful faction leader, with other groups consolidating under Chennithala.

For the next two decades, the Chandy-Chennithala rivalry defined the Congress in Kerala. However, the party slipped into further disarray after Chandy’s health declined in 2021 and Pinarayi Vijayan secured a second consecutive term as Chief Minister. By then, former Antony faction leaders V.M. Sudheeran and Mullapally Ramachandran had served as state Congress presidents, but their leadership saw further internal strife rather than stability.

In the midst of this flux, a new leadership duo emerged — K. Sudhakaran, the Kannur MP, as State Congress President, and V.D. Satheesan, a five-time legislator, as Leader of the Opposition. However, the last three years have been marked by infighting and chaos.

Then came a dramatic shift — the party high command stepped in decisively after Shashi Tharoor, the four-time Thiruvananthapuram MP, began asserting his influence. His rise triggered a realignment of factions, prompting the high command to summon senior leaders and issue a firm warning — no more public squabbling.

In a symbolic move, Sudhakaran reached out to Ramachandran, and after a private discussion, the two leaders presented a united front, declaring that their sole focus would be on bringing the Congress-led UDF back to power in the 2026 Assembly elections, starting with a strong performance in the local body elections later this year.

A media critic, speaking on condition of anonymity, remained skeptical. “Going by past experience, Congress leaders in Kerala have never been able to remain silent for long,” he noted.

He recalled a favourite quote of the late Oommen Chandy — “none except the Congress workers can defeat the Congress party. The diagnosis of the party’s troubles has remained unchanged for decades. The only thing that has changed is the actors. The real question now is whether the prognosis will be any different. Time will tell whether last week’s Delhi intervention has truly set the party on a new path.”

–IANS

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