Thiruvananthapuram: Doctors employed at government medical colleges across Kerala have escalated their ongoing protest by announcing a comprehensive, indefinite strike beginning February 2, the Kerala Government Medical College Teachers’ Association (KGMCTA) confirmed on Sunday. This move reflects growing frustration among faculty over unresolved issues spanning salary revisions, staffing shortages, and inadequate infrastructure. The announcement signals a significant escalation in a dispute that has simmered for months and highlights the widening gap between the state government and medical college professionals.
The association, which represents faculty members from across Kerala’s medical colleges, has declared that outpatient (OP) services, teaching responsibilities, and other routine academic duties will be suspended indefinitely starting tomorrow. The strike follows a series of smaller protests dating back to July 2025, which included limited work stoppages and demonstrations. According to KGMCTA, these incremental measures failed to elicit a meaningful response from the government, prompting the move to a more robust action plan.
Under the new strike framework, all OP departments will remain closed, non-emergency surgical procedures will be suspended from February 9, and university exam-related duties will be boycotted beginning February 11. Despite the wide-ranging disruption, KGMCTA has stressed that essential and life-saving services such as casualty units, ICU operations, emergency surgeries, labour room support, and inpatient care will continue to operate to ensure patient safety. The leadership is attempting to balance the impact of the strike with the imperative of protecting lives.
The protesting doctors have publicly criticized the state government for failing to honour repeated assurances given in previous rounds of talks. Key demands include timely and equitable pay revisions, rectification of salary anomalies for faculty appointed post-2016, creation of additional posts proportionate to workload, and substantial improvements in infrastructure across medical colleges. The doctors also demand that outstanding salary arrears be cleared immediately, noting that other state employees have already received their revised pay, creating a growing sense of inequity within the healthcare sector.
Leading figures in the association, including State President Dr Rosnara Begum and General Secretary Dr Aravind C S, emphasized that without concrete steps from the government, the strike could expand to include additional duties and services, further intensifying the disruption. “Despite repeated discussions at the ministerial level, tangible action on our demands has not materialized,” the KGMCTA leadership stated, highlighting that medical college faculty shoulder dual responsibilities of patient care and academic training, often under challenging conditions.
Healthcare users across Kerala are bracing for the likely disruption in routine medical services, with the suspension of OP departments and elective procedures expected to create immediate inconvenience for patients. Non-emergency treatments and regular check-ups may face delays, raising concerns among the public regarding timely access to care. The government has yet to release an official statement addressing the latest escalation, leaving both faculty and patients in a state of uncertainty.
This strike underscores broader systemic issues within Kerala’s public healthcare system, drawing attention to longstanding concerns over workforce management, infrastructure development, and equitable compensation for medical professionals. The unfolding situation reflects the urgent need for dialogue and concrete reforms to prevent disruption in public health services while ensuring fair treatment for the state’s medical workforce.