JAMMU, Aug 30: Dr Varinder Sharma, Co-Convener, Health Cell, J&K BJP, has extended categorical support to the undergraduate MBBS and BDS interns across Jammu and Kashmir who have announced an indefinite strike from 31 August 2026, demanding a long-overdue revision of their monthly stipend from Rs 12,300 to Rs 30,000.
Addressing the media, Dr Sharma said the interns “toil day and night” across government hospitals and form the very backbone of the healthcare delivery system in the Union Territory.
“These young doctors run our OPDs, wards, and emergency services at all hours, often under immense pressure, yet they are paid a stipend that has not been revised since January 2019,” he remarked.
Highlighting the steep rise in the cost of living, Dr Sharma noted that inflation, rising rents, and escalating food and transport costs have made it virtually impossible for interns to sustain a modern city life on Rs 12,300 a month.
“This amount was perhaps adequate seven years ago, but today it is grossly inadequate and, frankly, humiliating for professionals rendering such critical service,” he stated.
Dr Sharma also drew attention to the glaring disparity between J&K and other states, pointing out that interns in Odisha, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh receive stipends ranging between Rs 25,000 and over Rs 44,000, while even central government institutions pay Rs 30,070.
“If other states can treat their interns fairly, there is no logical reason why the J&K administration continues to lag so far behind. At the very least, our interns must be brought at par with the national average,” he asserted.
He further recalled that a government-constituted committee had recommended a hike to Rs 25,000 as far back as 2023, but the file has been allowed to gather dust between the Health and Finance Departments.
“This bureaucratic apathy is unacceptable and reflects poorly on the administration’s priorities,” he said.
Dr Sharma warned that the onus of any disruption to healthcare services now rests squarely with the government, as the interns’ agitation would inevitably affect patient care across hospitals.
“The government has no logical reasoning left to justify further delay,” he lamented, urging the administration to see reason and immediately accede to the interns’ justified demands.
He appealed to the government to act with urgency and sensitivity, so that patients are spared unnecessary suffering and the dedicated young doctors of J&K are given the dignity and financial security they rightfully deserve.