Bangladesh

Postgrad doctors block Shahbagh demanding stipend hike

Photo: Amran Hossain/STAR

Demanding a hike in their monthly stipends to Tk 50,000 from Tk 25,000, postgraduate private trainee doctors blocked Shahbagh intersection this afternoon.

The blockade resulted in halt of traffic movement, causing huge suffering to commuters.

The protesters said they gathered at BSMMU around 10:00am and later marched towards Shahbagh intersection.

As of 3:30pm, the protests are still ongoing.

One of the protesters, Mustafizur Rahman, said they have long been demanding hike in their stipend but the authorities did not pay heed to their demand.

"We will continue our protest here until our demand is met," he told The Daily Star.

Around five hours after the protest began, at 3:00pm, demonstrators announced that senior officials from Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Directorate General of Health Services had assured them of addressing their demands. 

However, they stated they would continue their movement until a written notification is issued. 

The protesters gathered today under the banner of "Doctors' Movement for Justice Society — A Society" (DMJS).

DMJS President Jabir Hossain said that the DMJS and its affiliate organisation, the Postgraduate Private Trainee Doctors' Association (PPTDA), have been protesting on the streets since 2022, demanding a justified increase in allowances for private postgraduate doctors.

Protesters said that they are demonstrating as the government failed to issue a notification regarding their stipend increments within the stipulated deadline of December 21.

Mamsad Shanjary Khan, a student of the 47th batch of MPH course of National Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine (NIPSOM), said, "It is impossible for our families to survive on a salary of 25,000 taka. Our demand is that the allowance should be increased to 50,000 taka. Previously, we used to receive 20,000 taka from the government, which was later increased to 25,000 taka."

He further said, "Even before the anti-discrimination movement, we have been protesting on the streets, struggling for an increase in our allowances. In this new Bangladesh after August 5, we no longer want a place for discrimination. We also want an increase in doctors' salaries. We will not leave the streets until our demands met."

DMJS General Secretary Md Nurun Nabi said, "We have been forced to take to the streets. The authorities are asking for more time. How much more time should we give? We have been waiting for the past two years. The allowance was supposed to be increased last January."

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Postgrad doctors block Shahbagh demanding stipend hike

Photo: Amran Hossain/STAR

Demanding a hike in their monthly stipends to Tk 50,000 from Tk 25,000, postgraduate private trainee doctors blocked Shahbagh intersection this afternoon.

The blockade resulted in halt of traffic movement, causing huge suffering to commuters.

The protesters said they gathered at BSMMU around 10:00am and later marched towards Shahbagh intersection.

As of 3:30pm, the protests are still ongoing.

One of the protesters, Mustafizur Rahman, said they have long been demanding hike in their stipend but the authorities did not pay heed to their demand.

"We will continue our protest here until our demand is met," he told The Daily Star.

Around five hours after the protest began, at 3:00pm, demonstrators announced that senior officials from Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Directorate General of Health Services had assured them of addressing their demands. 

However, they stated they would continue their movement until a written notification is issued. 

The protesters gathered today under the banner of "Doctors' Movement for Justice Society — A Society" (DMJS).

DMJS President Jabir Hossain said that the DMJS and its affiliate organisation, the Postgraduate Private Trainee Doctors' Association (PPTDA), have been protesting on the streets since 2022, demanding a justified increase in allowances for private postgraduate doctors.

Protesters said that they are demonstrating as the government failed to issue a notification regarding their stipend increments within the stipulated deadline of December 21.

Mamsad Shanjary Khan, a student of the 47th batch of MPH course of National Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine (NIPSOM), said, "It is impossible for our families to survive on a salary of 25,000 taka. Our demand is that the allowance should be increased to 50,000 taka. Previously, we used to receive 20,000 taka from the government, which was later increased to 25,000 taka."

He further said, "Even before the anti-discrimination movement, we have been protesting on the streets, struggling for an increase in our allowances. In this new Bangladesh after August 5, we no longer want a place for discrimination. We also want an increase in doctors' salaries. We will not leave the streets until our demands met."

DMJS General Secretary Md Nurun Nabi said, "We have been forced to take to the streets. The authorities are asking for more time. How much more time should we give? We have been waiting for the past two years. The allowance was supposed to be increased last January."

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বছরখানেক সময় পেলে সংস্কার কাজগুলো করে যাব: আইন উপদেষ্টা

আইন উপদেষ্টা বলেন, দেশে যদি প্রতি পাঁচ বছর পর পর সুষ্ঠু নির্বাচন হতো এবং নির্বাচিত দল সরকার গঠন করত, তাহলে ক্ষমতাসীন দল বিচার বিভাগকে ব্যবহার করে এতটা স্বৈরাচারী আচরণ করতে পারত না।

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