Govt Official urges JIPMER to suspend stir

Pondicherry, Sep 9 (UNI) Union Health Secretary Prasanna Hota today called upon the striking Jipmer employees to suspend their stir and prepare for another round of talks.

Talking to newspersons here, he said the three-member team from the Union Health Ministry had explained to the employees that the Cabinet decision to convert Jipmer into a Statuatory Institution through an Act of Parliament was to improve the health facilities in the Institute to make it on par with AIIMS and PG Institute, Chandigarh.

Mr Hota said there will be no change and the employees will not be affected in anyway. In fact, the working conditons will only be improved, he added.

However, the Jipmer Anti-Conversion Action Committee had made it clear that there was no question of suspending the strike. The Committee President Arokiyam Kalaimathy demanded that the Union Cabinet revoke its decision.

Earlier, tension prevailed in the Jipmer campus when the employees blocked the vehicle of Mr Hota and others. Police posted in the campus had to use mild force to disperse them and to make way for the vehicles.

The Joint Action Committee(JAC) had convened another meeting immediately after the talks with the delegation.

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