Chandigarh health department has more than 112 Punjab cadre doctors who have been working there for more than a decade and have not been repatriated back to their home cadre for long. After the protests of the Chandigarh UT Cadre Doctors, UT Administration proposed to send back these doctors to the home cadre, and this stirred the controversy. Moreover, political interference is delaying the process of repatriation.
Shiromani Akali Dal has raised strong objection to the proposal of the Chandigarh Administration of sending back 112 Punjab doctors working on deputation in the Union Territory and hire more doctors from other states, and UTs and party termed this decision as a conspiracy to dilute state’s share in Chandigarh Administration and also announced that a SAD delegation will meet Union Home Minister to take up the issue.
Addressing a press conference party head office here on Tuesday, Former Education Minister and party Spokesman Daljit Singh Cheema said that he was surprised to see that when Punjab leaders were busy in state Assembly elections, officers of UT Chandigarh hatched this conspiracy to send back 112 Punjab doctors to their parent state and gave in advertisement to hire doctors from Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Centre Government and other Union Territories for Chandigarh. He said that this was a clear violation of the Punjab Reorganisation Act which states that Punjab and Haryana will depute administration on 60:40 ratio on Chandigarh.
He said that this was not the first time when such a conspiracy has been hatched to end Punjab’s share in the Administration of Chandigarh. He said that earlier too the attempts were made by officials posted in Chandigarh by the Centre Government but when such proposals were opposed tooth and nail by Akali Dal, they were rolled back but surprisingly no one was punished for hatching such a conspiracy.
Citing examples, the former Punjab Education Minister said that in 2018 a proposal was mooted to recruit 468 JBT teachers for Chandigarh. He said that as per the Punjab Reorganisation Act, rules and regulations of Punjab are in force in Chandigarh, but officials not only gave exemption in the provision of studying Punjabi as an essential subject till 10th class, but they also allowed tests in English and Hindi only thereby completely ignoring Punjabi. He said that when he raised this issue with Punjab Government, an amended advertisement was issued by the Chandigarh Administration for the same.
Dr. Cheema said that this was not enough, Chandigarh has recruited more than 80 percent of staff for the Education sector on its own whereas rules say that they have to be deputed by Punjab and Haryana in the ratio of 60:40. He said that even for the remaining 20 percent of staff Punjab was not getting its 12 percent share.
He also disclosed that as an Education Minister he had opposed the shifting of Punjab teachers from Chandigarh in 2015 and had sent a detailed report including a list of subject-wise teachers to Punjab Governor and Administrator Chandigarh asking him that Punjab was still to get 211 more posts apart from present ones at that time and had vehemently opposed their shifting.
Quoting a letter written by former Punjab Governor SS Ray to the then Union Home Secretary, Dr. Cheema said that he had made it clear that Chandigarh should not be run like other UTs as it was the capital of Punjab.
He said that Chandigarh was carved out of the land of Punjab villages and Punjab sacrificed only to get its own Capital. He also said that instead of getting its Capital, now conspiracies are being hatched to deny Punjab its share of 60 percent staff in Chandigarh.