Health Workers Struggling with Salary Issues in Kailali

Health workers in several municipalities of Kailali have raised concerns over not receiving their salaries.

According to advertisements, health workers who are working beyond their assigned quotas have not been paid for nine months. In Janki Rural Municipality alone, 20 health workers exceed the allocated positions, and the federal government has not provided the necessary salary allowances for these employees.

Jit Bahadur Chaudhary, the head of the health department, stated that the rural municipality has only received 14.2 million rupees for health workers. "We have received salaries for all health workers for three months from the upcoming budget," he said.

Despite this, health workers are facing significant difficulties as they have not received their salaries from the Ministry of Health and Population and the Ministry of Finance until the last month of the fiscal year.

Last year as well, there was a shortfall of salaries for rural municipality employees for two months, which were later compensated in Ashad. Health Branch Chief Chaudhary also reported that there will be reduced salaries and allowances in the upcoming fiscal year.

Following the restructuring and integration of the federal government into the rural municipality, Pramod Kathariya has not received his salary for nine months, leading to considerable challenges in managing household expenses.

"I've had to defer loan payments to cover bank installments. I have also been unable to pay my children's school fees," he lamented. Due to these financial constraints, local traders have lost confidence in him.

"This job is my sole source of income, and it has become increasingly difficult to manage household expenses without receiving my salary for such a long period," he added. Similarly, health workers in Godawari Municipality have also encountered delays in receiving their salaries and allowances.

Furthermore, there are 39 more employees than the allocated positions in Godawari Municipality. Although there are positions for 52 employees, currently 91 are employed.

Health Branch Chief Navaraj Awasthi highlighted a budget deficit of 1.13 crores in the current fiscal year due to the Ministry of Health's agreement to transfer employees without positions to local governments.

Public Health Improvement Branch Chief Bal Bahadur Rawal of Tikapur Municipality explained that problems arose when representatives insisted on providing jobs to their acquaintances based on personal services.