108 ambulance employees tender mass resignation in Balangir, Cuttack

Balangir/Cuttack: Emergency healthcare services were largely affected across the state as the employees of 108 ambulance in Balangir district on Tuesday tendered mass resignation before the district collector protesting against the arrest of 108-Ambulance Employees’ Association secretary Manoj Sahu.
“We were forced to take the extreme step after the association secretary was arrested without any reason. The police arrested him for leading a protest seeking fulfillment of our several demands, including timely payment of salary,” the employees stated in their resignation letter to the collector.
On Monday, the 108 ambulance staff of Balangir district had stationed 17 ambulances in front of Balangir Collectorate in protest of Sahu’s arrest. They had also handed over keys of the ambulances to the authorities concerned.
On the other hand, as many as 183 staff of the 108 ambulance submitted a letter of mass resignation to Cuttack district collector. They also parked 26 ambulances before the collector’s office.
Manoj Sahu was arrested on Sunday on basis of a complaint filed against him under the SC/ST Atrocities Act by the head of 108-ambulance operations in western Odisha Dhaneswar Tirkey on August 10 following a verbal brawl between the two during a meeting in Balangir on various issues, including pay hike, on August 9.