Senior resident doctors in Mumbai, Maharashtra, are alleging that they are not being paid the full stipends that they are entitled to. These doctors, who work in government hospitals run by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), state that they are receiving about Rs 15,000 less than what has been fixed for them.
In 2023, the Government of Maharashtra approved an increase in stipend for senior resident doctors in public medical colleges to Rs 85,000, following demands from the Maharashtra State Association of Resident Doctors (MARD).
However, these doctors are alleging that the revision is not being uniformly implemented across the state, and senior resident doctors in BMC-run peripheral hospitals allege that they are receiving only Rs 64,000 to Rs 66,000 per month.
According to information shared by these doctors with EdexLive, these hospitals include:
MW Desai Municipal Hospital in Malad (Rs 64,537)
MT Agarwal Hospital in Mulund (Rs 64,528)
Siddharth Hospital, Goregaon (Rs 65,861)
SVDS Hospital, Mulund (East) (Rs 62,445)
BDBA Shatabdi Hospital, Kandivali (Rs 66,598)
Sion ENT Hospital (Rs 64,527)
VN Desai Hospital, Santacruz (Rs 64,500)
KB Bhabha Hospital, Bandra (Rs 64,500)
The doctors say that they have been trying to bring this matter to the notice of the Deputy Municipal Commissioner (Public Health), Sharad N Ughade, but to no avail.
“We were told that the matter would be considered once they receive the file, but we submitted our resolution months ago,” said Dr Abhijit Helge, former State President, MARD.
He adds that this disparity weighs heavily on the doctors financially.
“Resident Doctors serving in these hospitals are not given hostel facilities, so they have to find accommodation close to the hospitals. With how expensive Mumbai is, over half of their expenses go into just rent. How can they sustain themselves and their families with the money that remains?” Dr Helge asks, adding that many senior resident doctors are married men with families, or have to also take care of their parents.
More than anything, the doctors believe that they are entitled to receive their full stipends, as it is their right.
“When a certain amount has been fixed as stipend for senior residents in the states, why can’t the BMC follow it? Why can’t the DCM ensure that it is uniformly implemented across the state?” asks Dr Abhinav Wagh, health activist and former Joint Secretary of the Association of State Medical Interns (ASCIM) Maharashtra, extending support to the senior residents.
“All of us ended up working as senior resident doctors in various hospitals and health centres run by the BMC after finishing our MD, going through the same medical counselling process. I do not see the reason for this disparity,” Dr Helge says.
As a result, these doctors demand that the stipends for senior residents in these peripheral hospitals be increased by at least Rs 10,000, or be made on par with those in other medical hospitals run by the BMC.
To push their demand forward, Dr Helge reveals that MARD will be sending representations to various political leaders and Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) in Maharashtra.
“Currently, the Assembly is in session, so the leaders might be busy. However, we will try to approach them in the next three to four days,” Dr Helge reveals.
If these amount to nothing, he adds that the senior residents would be compelled to launch a strike.
