Doctors in Kerala’s government medical colleges, via the Kerala Government Medical College Teachers’ Association (KGMCTA), have announced an outpatient (OP) department boycott starting Monday, 20 October, if their historic demands including pay revision arrears, entry-cadre anomalies and faculty vacancies are not addressed.
Glimpse:
Government medical college faculty in Kerala are escalating their ongoing protest and plan to boycott outpatient services in a staggered manner from 20 October onwards. The issues they raise include delayed pay-revision arrears dating from 2016, dearness allowance arrears, staffing shortfalls in teaching posts and anomalies in entry-level cadre salaries. The KGMCTA says repeated requests to the state government have gone unanswered and, having already boycotted theory classes and staged sit-in protests, they are moving to the OP boycott as their next step.
Doctors in Kerala’s government medical colleges are set to boycott outpatient services starting October 20, escalating their long-standing protests. Led by the Kerala Government Medical College Teachers’ Association (KGMCTA), the move comes after repeated appeals for pay revision arrears dating back to 2016, correction of entry-level pay disparities, filling vacant teaching posts, and payment of pending dearness allowance arrears. Faculty members argue that the delays and discrepancies have strained both morale and workloads, impacting education and patient care.
The planned boycott marks a major escalation after previous sit-ins and class boycotts failed to prompt government action. An outpatient shutdown would directly affect patients seeking routine care, particularly in rural and underserved regions where government medical colleges serve as key health centers. The state government now faces mounting pressure to resolve the standoff while ensuring healthcare access and continuity in medical education.
“If we continue to provide services with no resolution in sight, we’re compromising our teaching, our clinical duties and the trust of students and patients. We must act now.”
By
HB Team
