Odisha Nurses End Strike After Assurance from Health Minister

Nurses at state-run hospitals in Odisha concluded their four-day strike after receiving assurances from Health Minister Mukesh Mahaling. The minister promised to meet their 10-point demand, which includes regularization of contractual services and other administrative issues. The strike had severely impacted health services across the state.

Nurses at state-run hospitals in Odisha concluded their four-day strike after being assured by Health Minister Mukesh Mahaling that their 10-point demand would be fulfilled. The action was spearheaded by the Odisha Nursing Employees' Union, whose general secretary, Ashwini Kumar Das, confirmed that nurses resumed duties at 11 PM on Saturday following discussions with the minister.

'We called off the strike after the government assured us that our demands would soon be fulfilled. The minister said that the government is aware of our demands and has set up an inter-departmental committee to address our issues,' Das told reporters.

The nursing staff had been pressing for the regularization of contractual nurses, changes in the dress code, and the establishment of administrative posts in the nursing service cadre. Additional demands included ending the engagement of nursing officers through outsourcing agencies and instituting place-based incentives for those working in tribal areas. Although the state government invoked the Odisha Emergency Services (Maintenance) Act (ESMA), 1988 to halt the strike, the nursing staff continued to defy the order, severely impacting health services statewide.