Female Trainee Clerks In Surat Stripped, Subjected To Finger Test

Female trainee clerks of Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) were made to stand naked and undergo "finger test" as a part of a fitness test organized by a state-run hospital. This incident has come to light while the nation is processing the incident in Bhuj, where 68 students of a girls' college were forced to take off their underpants to prove they were not menstruating. The trainees were asked to allegedly strip in a group of 10 for the examination. The female gynaecologists who were conducting this fitness test have also been accused of asking "private questions about pregnancy," and conducting finger test.

About 100 women trainee clerks were divided into groups of 10 each in separate rooms for the mandatory fitness examination

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• 100 women trainee clerks in Surat were forced to stand naked in groups for a fitness test.
• The fitness test was reportedly mandatory for trainees post probation.
• A complaint has been filed by AA Sheikh, general secretary of the employee's union.
• Instead of calling the women one by one in the room for the test, the female doctors made them stand naked in groups, says the complaint.

Read Also: Shocker: Bhuj College Girls told not to use beds, eat at dining room during periods

About 100 women trainee clerks were divided into groups of 10 each in separate rooms for the fitness examination. The medical test is mandatory for the trainees to clear them for the posts of regular clerks. According to a complaint lodged by Surat Municipal Corporation Employee Union (SMCEU) with municipal commissioners, around 100 employees underwent a fitness test on Thursday when they reached the Surat Municipal Institute of Medical Education and Research (SMIMER).

On Thursday evening, a complaint was filed by AA Shaikh, the general secretary of the employee's union regarding the objectionable method of the fitness test. Many women clerks reported the objectionable manner in which it was conducted, and thus the complaint was filed. Shaikh said in his letter that such tests are mandatory but they are done individually and not in groups where they are forced to stand naked.

If doctors had any doubt about an employee’s health, they should have got tests done in an acceptable manner. Asking even unmarried women about past pregnancies is downright insulting.

As per the rulebook, trainee employees have to mandatorily appear for a physical fitness test to ensure that they are suitable and healthy for the job post-training completion. The women who were allegedly made to face this ordeal underwent the test after completing three years of training. Apart from being subjected to finger test for checking pregnancy, the women were also asked if they ever got pregnant, irrespective of their marital status, reports The Times Of India. Also, it has been alleged that the lady doctors behaved rudely with the trainees, while the door of the examination room wasn't properly closed and only a thin curtain blocked the view in the rooms where the medical examination took place.

"If they (doctors) had any doubt about an employee’s health, they should have got tests done in an acceptable manner. Asking even unmarried women about past pregnancies is downright insulting,” Shaikh said. Ashwin Vachhani, head of the gynecology department at the hospital, said, "We have to examine women physically since it is mandatory as per the guidelines. I don't know if such tests are done on men, but in case of women we follow rules to find out if they have any specific illness.”

Pic Credit: http://i.dawn.com/

Read Also: Bhuj College Girls Forced To Remove Underwear As Proof Of Periods

Saavriti is an intern with SheThePeople.TV