Punjab among 4 states not paying timely salaries to medicos: Centre

If the states are not complying with the directions of the Central government, you are not helpless. You have to ensure that your order is implemented. You have got the power under the Disaster Management Act. APEX COURT BENCH

NEWDELHI: Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka and Tripura are yet to follow directives on timely payment of salaries to healthcare workers engaged in Covid-19, the Centre on Friday told the Supreme Court, which said it cannot be “helpless” in implementing the directions.

The court directed the Centre to issue necessary directions for releasing salaries of doctors and frontline healthcare workers engaged in COVID-19 duty on time.

A bench of justices Ashok Bhushan, R Subhash Reddy and MR Shah asked the Centre to also clarify on treating compulsory quarantine period of healthcare workers as leave and deduction of their salaries for the same period.

“If the states are not complying with the directions and orders of the Central government, you are not helpless. You have to ensure that your order is implemented. You have got the power under the Disaster Management Act. You can take steps also”, the bench told Solicitor

General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre.

Mehta said that after the top court’s directions on June 17, necessary orders were issued on June 18 to all the states, with regard to payment of salaries to healthcare workers. He said that many states have complied with the directions but some of them like Maharashtra, Punjab, Tripura and Karnataka have not paid salaries to the doctors and healthcare workers on time.

Senior Advocate KV Vishwanathan, appearing for petitioner Arushi Jain, said the high risk and low risk classification made by the Centre has no basis and the government advisory of June 18 after the top court’s order has no rational basis. He said that there is still non-payment of salaries to healthcare workers.

The bench was hearing a plea of Dr Arushi Jain, a private doctor questioning the Centre’s May 15 decision that 14-day quarantine was not mandatory for doctors. The top court also took note of an application filed by United Resident Doctors Association (URDA) through advocates Mithu Jain, Mohit Paul and Arnav Vidyarthi that salaries of doctors are being deducted for the period of compulsory quarantine treating it as leave period. To this, Mehta conceded that “the said period can’t be treated as leave” and said that he would take necessary instructions on the issue.

He said the Central government will take steps to ensure that the salaries of doctors and healthcare workers is paid on time. The top court posted the matter for further hearing on August 10.