Contract nurses in Tamil Nadu, hired through the Medical Services Recruitment Board (MRB), have halted their prolonged protest following the state government’s commitment to granting them permanent positions and addressing long-pending benefits. The nurses, employed in government hospitals and primary health centers, had been demonstrating for days, demanding regularization of their services. The agitation concluded positively after discussions with senior government officials and Health Minister Ma Subramanian.
Thousands of nurses, predominantly appointed on a temporary basis via the MRB, had been advocating for permanent status for years. The issue, highlighted by the Tamil Nadu Nurses Development Association, has roots dating back nearly a decade. Initially recruited between 2014 and 2015, around 15,300 nurses were promised regularization after two years of service. While approximately 7,000 have transitioned to permanent roles, about 8,300 remained on contractual terms.
The protesting nurses emphasized the unmet promise made by the DMK in its 2021 Assembly election manifesto to regularize all temporary nurses. Despite the manifesto’s Clause 356 guaranteeing the regularization of contract-based doctors and nurses, the nurses alleged that the commitment had not been fulfilled as the government’s term neared its end. Following negotiations and instructions from Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, Health Minister Subramanian announced plans to regularize contract nurses gradually, with immediate absorption of over 1,000 nurses into permanent positions.
Pending promotions will be addressed, and new posts will be created as needed, as per the government’s assurance. The nurses’ associations, satisfied with the government’s commitments, have withdrawn their protest, hopeful that the promises will be promptly executed.
