A section of government medical college doctors in Kerala on 15 January staged a one-day relay hunger strike demanding that government rectify 'anomalies' in the pay revision of medical college lecturers.

The protest was led by the Kerala Government Medical College Teachers Association (KGMCTA)and the Kerala Government Postgraduate Medical Teachers Association (KGPMTA). "Medical teachers are fighting for their professions dignity. The doctors have been at the forefront of fighting the COVID-19 pandemic." "As responsible healthcare professionals, we are staging the protest without causing inconvenience to the public. Our demand is that government provide arrears from January 1, 2016," Dr Unmesh, Ernakulam unit president of KGMCTA told reporters.

KGMCTA claimed that the government hadnt given any assurance on providing arrears while implementing the pay revision. The pay revision, which was due in 2016, was done only in 2020 and the government had assured that it will have a retrospective effect from January 1, 2016, it said. But, it has not given any commitment on arrears, the KGMCTA said in a release. The anomalies in pay structure of entry cadre doctors resulted in a shortfall of around Rs 15,000 for those who joined service after 2016, it said.