The Tamil Nadu government has initiated the phased regularization of contract nurses, with over 1,000 set to transition to permanent roles in the initial phase. This decision led to the withdrawal of the ongoing strike by the protesting nurses. Health and Family Welfare Minister Ma Subramanian revealed that the move came following Chief Minister M K Stalin’s directives after extensive discussions with nursing associations.
The contract nurses, employed through the Medical Services Recruitment Board, had been protesting across the state, advocating for permanent positions and better working conditions. Responding to the Chief Minister’s orders, the Health Minister engaged in multiple dialogues with nurse representatives on December 19, December 22, and December 24, subsequent to presenting their demands to the Chief Minister. As a result of the recent negotiations, the state government has committed to addressing long-pending promotions and creating new positions to facilitate the regularization process for existing contract nurses.
In an immediate measure, more than 1,000 nurses will be absorbed into regular service soon, while the remaining contract nurses will be transitioned to permanent roles gradually. Minister Subramanian highlighted the government’s achievements, noting that out of 6,395 contract nurses appointed in 2015 during the previous administration, only 1,871 had been regularized by 2020. Conversely, since the DMK government took office in 2021, a total of 4,825 contract nurses have been granted permanent status over the past four-and-a-half years.
