KARACHI: The Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) has rapped federal health ministry for failing to provide service structure to doctors and other employees of five hospitals in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, despite passage of 30 years, who now face demotions to their basic pay scale (BPS) by Accountant General of Pakistan Revenue (AGPR) for none of their own fault.
PMA Central Secretary General Dr Abdul Ghafoor Shoro in a statement said the finance division had decided in 1991 to upgrade the pay scale of these medical professionals, on time scale basis, without formulating any service structure, placing them in BPS 18, 19 and 20.
However, now the AGPR has downgraded their pay scale and also decided to recover the “additional money” paid to the hospital staffers “without any promotion” because of the absence of a service structure.
As a result, he said, some of these employees serving in BPS 20, and approaching superannuation, are being reverted to BPS 17 and will be given pensions and other benefits as an officer in the initial grade (BPS-17).
This, he said, is very unfortunate and unjust that these health professionals are facing trouble and mental torture at the end of their careers due to the negligence and lethargy of health ministry.
PMA demands the federal government to immediately take notice of the situation and formulate a service structure for these employees at the earliest to provide them their due rights.