New Delhi, July 21 (IANS) With an umbrella council being mulled for India’s health education sector, physiotherapists have demanded a separate slot in the proposed body.
In a letter addressed to the health ministry, the Indian Association of Physiotherapists (IAP) Wednesday demanded an independent wing for physiotherapists.
‘In the proposed National Council for Human Resource in Health (NCHRH), we are being included along with the rehabilitation council. But we want a separate council for physiotherapists,’ said IAP president Ali Irani.
The NCHRH is being formed under the health ministry to oversee various streams of health education in the country.
‘We have been demanding the creation of a separate council since the last 40 years. Creation of a central council would not only help the profession in its recruitment stage but also in standardising the physiotherapy courses across the country,’ Irani said.
Presently, education in physiotherapy is controlled by the University Grants Commission. However, the NCHRH bill places it in a council along with rehabilitation courses.
‘In the combined council, the government is repeating the mistake by defining the wing as ‘rehabilitation and physiotherapy’. There are around 27,000 registered physiotherapists while there are around 3,000 professionals in rehabilitation,’ he pointed out.
The association also demanded a revision in the pay scales of professionals as this has not been done since 1970.
‘Today, even after investing four-and-half years, the basic pay of a physiotherapist is lesser than that of a nurse,’ said IAP general secretary Sanjiv Jha.
–Indo Asian news Service
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