No nurse will leave the hostel. Several political parties have extended their support.
In Kozhikode, a nurses' strike that began as a demand for fair wages has deepened into something older and more elemental — a contest between institutional power and collective dignity. Baby Memorial Hospital's decision to terminate strike supporters, confine newly hired nurses, and evict hundreds from their homes within a single day reveals how quickly labor disputes become tests of human endurance. The United Nurses Association, backed by political allies, stands firm, and the outcome will say something not only about wages but about the terms on which care workers are permitted to exist.
- Baby Memorial Hospital fired two supervising nurses and issued eviction notices to over 600 striking staff, compressing months of grievance into a single punishing Monday.
- Newly recruited nurses were allegedly locked inside a hospital hall when management tried to deploy them as strike replacements — a move that drew union leaders into a tense physical confrontation with hospital officials.
- The hospital ordered striking nurses out of subsidized hostels by 8 a.m. Tuesday, threatening not just their livelihoods but their immediate shelter in a single sweeping directive.
- Union vice president Amrita M K declared that no nurse would vacate the hostel, and by evening protesters were marching on the hospital demanding all punitive actions be reversed.
- With multiple political parties publicly backing the nurses, the standoff is no longer contained within hospital walls — it is becoming a question of political will as much as labor law.
The strike at Baby Memorial Hospital in Kozhikode crossed a new threshold on Monday when management terminated two supervising nurses for supporting the walkout, even as more than six hundred of their colleagues refused duty in a statewide action demanding minimum wages and better working conditions.
The termination letters cited breach of employment obligations and what the hospital called a "lethargic attitude" — but the more alarming development came hours later. Newly hired nurses who had been called in for an induction session found themselves locked inside a hospital hall, apparently to be deployed as replacements for striking staff. Union leaders were summoned, and according to the nurses' side, the confrontation that followed included threats and attempted physical intimidation directed at union leader Muneer Shah by hospital management.
Amrita M K, vice president of the United Nurses Association's Baby Memorial unit, described how union leaders arrived and secured the recruits' release. She did not soften her account of what had taken place inside.
By afternoon, the hospital issued evacuation notices to all striking nurses living in its subsidized hostel, ordering them to leave within twenty-four hours and closing the mess facility that same evening. Management framed the hostel as a benefit reserved for employees who report to work.
Amrita rejected the order without qualification. No nurse would leave, she said, pointing to the political backing the protest had attracted and noting that no other Kozhikode hospital had moved against its nurses. As evening fell, protesters marched on Baby Memorial demanding the hospital withdraw every punitive measure. The standoff — between an institution wielding terminations and evictions, and workers willing to risk both — remained unresolved.
The strike at Baby Memorial Hospital in Kozhikode turned sharper on Monday when the hospital's leadership fired two supervising nurses accused of backing the walkout. The move came as more than six hundred nurses across the facility refused to show up for work, pressing demands for minimum wages and improved conditions as part of a broader statewide action organized by the United Nurses Association.
The termination letters, signed by the hospital's chairman and managing director, cited breach of employment obligations and what management called a "lethargic attitude" in job performance. But the real escalation came hours later, when newly hired nurses reported they had been locked inside a hospital hall. Union leaders say the recruits were summoned for an induction session that morning, then prevented from leaving when they realized management intended to deploy them as replacements for the striking staff. The confrontation that followed drew union representatives to the hospital and, according to accounts from the nurses' side, included threats and physical intimidation directed at strike leaders by hospital management.
Amrita M K, vice president of the United Nurses Association's unit at Baby Memorial Hospital, described the sequence plainly. The union had given advance notice of the strike and its demands. Management had contacted the newly joined nurses and asked them to attend training in a hospital hall. When those nurses tried to leave and found the doors locked, union leaders were called. "After being informed about the situation, union leaders reached the hospital and ensured their release," Amrita said. She also alleged that some members of the hospital management committee threatened union leader Muneer Shah and attempted to physically confront him.
The hospital's response was swift and punitive. By Monday afternoon, management issued an evacuation notice to all striking nurses living in the subsidized staff hostel on the hospital's academic campus. They were ordered to leave within twenty-four hours—by 8 a.m. Tuesday. The mess facility would close at 10 p.m. Monday. The hospital framed the hostel as a welfare benefit for employees who actually report to work, and stated that residents who had missed duty for days needed to go.
Amrita rejected the evacuation order outright. "No nurse will leave the hostel," she said, noting that several political parties had publicly backed the protest. The union also pushed back against the hospital's claim that the strike would cripple services. No other hospital in Kozhikode had taken action against nurses, she pointed out. The demands—minimum wages and better working conditions—remained unchanged, and the union would not relent until management withdrew its punitive measures.
By evening, protesters marched to Baby Memorial Hospital demanding that the hospital rescind its actions against staff who had supported the strike. The scene captured the raw tension: a hospital trying to break a labor action through terminations and evictions; nurses and their union determined to hold ground despite the threat of job loss and homelessness; and the question of whether political backing would be enough to shield them from the consequences of their refusal to work.
Citas Notables
We had informed the hospital management in advance about the strike demanding minimum wages. However, on Monday morning, the hospital authorities contacted recently joined nurses and asked them to attend an induction class in a hospital hall.— Amrita M K, vice president of the United Nurses Association's Baby Memorial Hospital unit
No nurse will leave the hostel. Several political parties have extended their support to our protest.— Amrita M K
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why did the hospital lock the new nurses in a hall? That seems like an extreme move.
The union's reading is that management was trying to deploy them as replacement workers—to keep the hospital functioning despite the strike. If the new recruits crossed the picket line, it would weaken the action.
And the hospital disputes that?
The hospital hasn't publicly explained the locking itself. They've focused on the strike being disruptive and on the hostel residents not showing up for duty. But the fact remains: doors were locked, and union leaders had to come free them.
What happens to a nurse who gets evicted from the hostel and loses her job?
That's the leverage. Most of these nurses depend on the subsidized housing to afford living near the hospital. Lose the job and the hostel, and you're displaced. The hospital knows that.
But Amrita said no one will leave. Do they have the power to actually resist?
They have numbers—over six hundred nurses—and political backing. But the hospital has property rights and employment contracts. It's a standoff with real consequences for people who can't afford to lose either.
Has anything like this happened before at other hospitals in Kozhikode?
Not according to the union. This is the only hospital taking this kind of action. That's partly why it's escalating—it's become a test case.