Employees are going on strike from today demanding the staff be absorbed by the state government as permanent government employees.
If you fall sick in the next three days, don’t try calling the 108 ambulance service. Employees of the ambulance service are going on strike from today demanding the staff be absorbed by the state government as permanent government employees. The strike is said to commence from 8pm on Tuesday.
At present, employees of the 108 ambulance services are working on a contract basis with GVK. While the service comes under the state government’s Arogya Kavacha programme, it is run by GVK Emergency Management and Research Institute.
On Wednesday, employees will gather at Chiklalbagh and will go on a procession till Freedom Park, where they will sit on a dharna.
But the chief operating officer of 108 ambulance service, Badrinath DV, denied knowledge of any such strike. “We are surprised by this information, since to the best of our knowledge none of our employees are indulging in any such strike call. May be some of our ex-employees are trying to disturb our people-oriented service by spreading false rumours, thereby trying to tarnish our image.”
But when DNA contacted the 108 service, most of the staff said they were participating in the strike. “Patients will have to organise their own vehicles, at least on Tuesday night and Wednesday, but we are expecting a solution by Wednesday evening," said the source.
Meanwhile, chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda appealed to the employees of 108 ambulance service not to go on a strike. He assured that the government will look into their demands.
Since its introduction on November 1, 2008, the 108 ambulance service has received around 2.50 crore phone calls and saved the lives of about 14 lakh people. The state has 517 ambulances under the Arogya Kavacha scheme. The service has been deployed in such a way that at least one ambulance is available for attending a call every 30 km. The deployment is based on population density.
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