The core of the dispute centers on dearness allowance, the critical cost-of-living adjustment designed to offset inflation, which resident doctors allege has been withheld despite a cumulative 31 percent increase. According to BMC-MARD, these figures have remained absent from their monthly paychecks. Financial discrepancies reported by the association indicate that first-year resident doctors currently receive a DA of ₹43,857, a figure that should have escalated to ₹47,000 under the latest mandate. Similarly, second- and third-year residents, who are presently paid ₹44,522 and ₹45,186 in DA respectively, are owed comparable increases. This fiscal stagnation translates to a loss of approximately ₹3,000 per doctor monthly, with individual arrears now approaching a total of ₹50,000.
The timeline of non-implementation, as detailed by the association, includes a 12 percent hike effective July 1, 2024, followed by an 11 percent increase from January 1, 2025, and a final 8 percent increment from July 1, 2025. Despite these scheduled milestones, current monthly salaries remain fixed at ₹81,000 for first-year residents, ₹82,000 for second-year residents, and ₹83,000 for third-year residents. BMC-MARD General Secretary Dr. Amar Agame confirmed that the escalating protest began with doctors wearing black ribbons on Wednesday. Should the deadlock persist, the association warns that medical staff assigned to outpatient departments (OPDs) will proceed on mass leave starting Friday.
The civic body has defended the delay by citing internal procedural hurdles. Sharad Ughade, Deputy Municipal Commissioner for Public Health, had previously requested that the medical staff defer their agitation until April 17, yet no breakthrough was achieved. Dr. Shailesh Mohite, dean of the civic-run Nair Hospital and director of medical education and major hospitals at the BMC, attributed the administrative paralysis to the absence of an authorized signatory who is currently on leave. While Dr. Mohite stated that the administration requested the doctors to wait for the official’s return, the association has moved forward with its planned disruption.
This unfolding standoff threatens to severely compromise the city’s public health system, as the withdrawal of resident doctors from OPDs is expected to cause widespread disruption to essential healthcare services. With thousands of patients reliant on civic hospitals daily, the situation places immense pressure on Mumbai’s medical hierarchy to secure a swift resolution and prevent a total escalation of the strike.
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