Say stipend has remained unchanged since 2015
PANAJI
In a bid to address their long-pending demands over remuneration, the Goa Association of Resident Doctors (GARD) delegation met Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday to demand an upward revision of pay scales for postgraduate medical professionals at Goa Medical College (GMC).
Led by GARD President Dr Lakshya Kumar Jha, the delegation highlighted that the stipend for resident doctors at GMC has remained unchanged since 2015, despite rising inflation and increasing workloads.
The doctors told Sawant that their counterparts in other states receive substantially higher stipends, making Goa’s stagnant pay structure a matter of growing discontent in their fraternity.
“The stipend revision process has been stuck in bureaucratic loops for years, with files moving back and forth without resolution,” Dr Jha told the media after the meeting.
The Chief Minister acknowledged the urgency of the issue and entrusted the under-secretary of finance with the responsibility of expediting the revision process, he added.
The meeting comes amid heightened awareness of the critical role resident doctors play in sustaining Goa’s healthcare system. Often working long hours in high-pressure environments, they form the backbone of patient care at GMC and other government facilities.
GARD’s push for higher compensation gained momentum recently when its office-bearers also met with Health Minister Vishwajit Rane regarding these demands. The need for parity with national standards and recognition of their contributions are the main reasons cited by GARD for the demand.
Sawant, on the other hand, urged the doctors to maintain dialogue and avoid disruptive measures such as strikes, even as he reiterated the government’s commitment to resolving the issue and improving working conditions for medical professionals.
As the state government begins reviewing the stipend structure, GARD said it remains cautiously optimistic, hoping that their appeals will translate into tangible policy changes soon.
