Srinagar, September 5, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Senior religious leader and chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Saturday urged the Jammu and Kashmir government to engage with striking MBBS and BDS interns and resolve their demand for an increase in their monthly stipend.
In a post on X, Mirwaiz said the concerns of medical interns across Jammu and Kashmir deserved “serious and urgent consideration”, arguing that the existing stipend of Rs 12,300 was inadequate for young doctors working long hours and carrying significant clinical responsibilities.
He also pointed to a government-constituted committee’s recommendation for an enhancement and said the prolonged delay in implementing it was difficult to justify.
“The administration should engage with the interns, address their genuine demand fairly and expeditiously, and ensure that patient care is not disrupted,” Mirwaiz said.
Medical interns across J&K are currently on strike, demanding that their monthly stipend be increased from Rs 12,300 to Rs 30,000. The stipend has remained unchanged since 2019.
J&K Health and Medical Education Minister Sakina Itoo said on Friday that the file concerning the proposed enhancement was under active consideration by the Finance Department and that there was no reason for the interns to continue their strike.
The deadlock continued on Saturday, with MBBS and BDS interns from several institutions deciding to extend their ongoing strike following high-level discussions with the government on September 4.
During the talks, the government proposed a 30-day administrative timeline for the long-pending revision of the stipend. A delegation of 12 student and intern representatives held separate discussions with Chief Minister’s Advisor Nasir Aslam Wani and Sakina Itoo.
The government informed the delegation that administrative and financial processes for the enhancement had already begun. Itoo acknowledged the interns’ demands as genuine in view of rising living costs and said the proposal had cleared the Health Department and was now with the Finance Department for assessment of its financial implications.
October 3, 2026, was indicated as a tentative deadline for fulfilling the demand, while the government also acknowledged concerns over academic losses and the impact on patient care.
The protests began recently as hundreds of interns from government medical institutions, including GMC Srinagar, GMC Baramulla and SKIMS Bemina, took to the streets demanding what they described as “equal work and equal pay”.
The interns have cited inflation and the unchanged stipend, which they said amounts to roughly Rs 400 a day. They also said interns in other states and Union Territories receive between Rs 25,000 and Rs 45,000 per month for similar clinical duties involving long working hours, 24-hour shifts and mandatory rural postings.
The strike has disrupted routine outpatient department services at several tertiary care facilities.
The interns have maintained that the strike will continue unless the government announces an increase in their stipend.
Senior doctors in J&K have also backed the protesting medical trainees. Interns play a significant role in healthcare delivery across the Union Territory, assisting with outpatient and inpatient care, emergencies and operation theatres.
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