Meghalaya Govt enhances 108 workers’ salary by 4%

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaJuly 19, 2024

The state government has decided to enhance the salary of the 108 emergency service employees by 4%. 

Informing this on Friday, health minister Ampareen Lyngdoh said, “We have agreed therefore to re-sign those contracts with the 108 workers permitting after consultation a 4% percent increase in their salaries because these were pending before the National Health Mission (NHM) under the department of health.”

She said because the workers at the initial stage of signing up with the NHM, which was a temporary arrangement in the state of Meghalaya for the running for the 108 services in the state, there have been several consultations that have been taken up with the 108 workers. 

“Because they had signed a one year agreement with the NHM, these agreements have to subsequently be updated. It was a one year contract so we have to renew all of these contracts with these workers in various assignments,” Lyngdoh added. 

The minister also informed that the department is engaging with various line departments for necessary advisory on the matter related to floating of yet another tender for running the 108 emergency service in the state.

“We understand that these tenders have again and again drawn various agendas and issues, which have forced the state governmen to put the tendering procedures under hold,” she said.

Further, Lyngdoh informed that she had received yet another representation that there is another group of workers in the 108 that are still dissatisfied with the 4% increase on various grounds. 

“There is no point discussing this but particularly three categories of workers – pilots, receptionists and EROs – so these workers when they first sign up the agreement with NHM for one year, started on a very much lower grade of renumeration so that has to be sorted out. I dont know whether or not we can do that but I have just received this representation on July 18, I will study it,” she said while adding “in the meanwhile, we have renewed all of the agreements with the 108 workers and that was something we had to do as a government.”