Chandigarh, March 1:
To achieve better operational efficiency through effective delivery of healthcare services to the people across the state, the Punjab Cabinet led by Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Monday gave approval to transfer 507 vacant posts of Rural Medical Officers (RMOs) along with other posts of contractual para-medical and class-IV of the Subsidiary Health Centres from the Department of Rural Development & Panchayat back to the Health & Family Welfare.
According to a spokesperson of the Chief Minister’s Office, in addition, the currently working RMOs of the Rural Development & Panchayats department who are desirous of merger in the Health and Family Welfare Department shall be allowed to do so with the condition that their seniority shall be counted from the date of their joining in the Health department and not from the date of their regularization in the Rural Development & Panchayats department. All other emoluments shall accrue to them from the date of their joining in the Health department. The RMOs shall be merged only after prior written consent on these terms and conditions.
Notably, the Cabinet also gave approval to the Health Department to incur entire expenditure including salary of RMOs, Para Medical and Class-IV staff, electricity bills, Operation & Maintenance of buildings and equipments and other expenses.
It may be recalled that in the year 2006, as many as 1183 Subsidiary Health Centers were transferred from Health Department to Rural Development & Panchayats. Doctors were engaged as Service Providers to run these Subsidiary Health Centers and they were required to engage a Pharmacist and a Class IV employee as a part of their salary package.
