Paramedical staffers from Primary Health Centres (PHCs) in Andhra Pradesh have decided to wear black badges while at work from Monday, in support of the demands made by the PHC doctors who have been on a strike.
The announcement was made during a roundtable, organised by the A.P. PHC Doctors’ Association, on the seventh day of its relay hunger strike in Vijayawada on Saturday.
The association announced that if the State government failed to address their concerns, the paramedical staff, including nurses and pharmacists at PHCs, would stage lunch-hour demonstrations. Medical officers from Urban Primary Health Centres (UPHCs) too have extended their support to the strike.
Directorate of Secondary Health Hospital Association, United Medical and Health Employees Association, Anganwadi Workers and Helpers Association, 108–104–102 Employees Associations, Samagra Shiksha Contract and Outsourcing Employees Association, A.P. Medical Lab Technicians Association, Praja Arogya Vedika, A.P. Contract Employees Association, A.P. Health Supervisors Association, NHM JAC, AP Government Staff Nurses Association, and AP PM Seva, among others, have extended support to the PHC doctors’ strike.
Urging the State government to honour its earlier assurances given to the doctors, A.P. PHCDA State general secretary K.M.R. Kishore said the protest would continue until their basic rights were achieved.
The association members clarified that their movement was apolitical and for just demands. They said that they were not against the State government, but against a few policies. They appealed to the government to respond with empathy and urgency and resolve their issues immediately.
According to information from the association, while there are 1,142 PHCs in the State, only 10% of them are being run with interns from medical colleges, who were deputed there in place of protesting doctors. Most PHCs are running with just the paramedical staff, without doctors, the members said.
Published – October 12, 2025 03:32 am IST
