Delhi govt set to renew contracts of 1K nurses amid rising demand

AFTER UNION PRESSURE; FINAL NOTIFICATION AWAITED FROM L-G'S OFFICE

- AIMAN FATIMA AND AMANPREET SINGH

NEW DELHI: In a major relief for nearly 1,000 contractual nursing officers across Delhi government hospitals, the Health Department has directed hospital administrations to continue their services beyond June 30, easing days of anxiety over job security.

While an official order is still awaited, hospital authorities received an internal email on June 30 from the health department asking them to retain all nursing officers. "The issue of the extension of the contractual nursing officer is under submission," stated the department's email.

The move follows a tense few weeks for Delhi's nursing staff, after several hospitals issued abrupt notices earlier in June, instructing many contractual nurses not to report for duty from July 1. Although some hospitals rolled back those notices within hours, fears about mass job losses lingered.