Conciliation talks convened by Kannur District Collector P. Vishnuraj to resolve the strike by nurses at six private hospitals ended without a breakthrough on Friday (July 10, 2026) after discussions were disrupted over the demand to extend any wage settlement to all private hospital employees in the district. The striking nurses launched a day-and-night protest outside the collectorate and announced an indefinite hunger strike from Monday (July 13, 2026) if the deadlock continued.Indian Nurses Association (INA) State general secretary E.A. Mohammed Shihab alleged that the talks failed after representatives of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) and the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) demanded that any wage revision agreed for the striking nurses should also apply to employees of all 36 private hospitals in Kannur.“On Thursday (July 9, 2026), the Collector had indicated that the issue concerning the six hospitals should be settled, but the CITU and the BMS insisted that any decision should cover all private hospital employees. The matter was then referred to the District Labour Officer, but discussions again reached a deadlock,” Mr. Shihab told The Hindu.He said the CITU and the BMS had already signed a wage agreement with the hospital managements on May 15, accepting a salary revision of ₹1,500 for those with up to 5 years’ experience, ₹2,000 for those with five to 10 years’ experience, and ₹3,000 for those with over 10 years’ experience.“They [CITU and BMS] accepted and signed the agreement and stayed away from the strike. Now, they are demanding that whatever hike is granted to the striking nurses be extended to all the hospitals in the district. The managements of the six hospitals have made it clear that while they can consider a settlement for nurses at their hospitals, extending it to other hospitals would cause a heavy financial burden,” Mr. Shihab said, alleging that the managements involved the CITU and the BMS in the talks to weaken the agitation.INA State vice-president Tejimol George accused the managements of deliberately derailing the negotiations. “The managements intentionally created confusion by bringing rival unions into the talks instead of resolving the nurses’ demands. The CITU had already accepted a separate wage agreement before the Labour department but is now opposing the nurses’ strike,” she said.Ms. George also alleged that private hospitals were increasingly deploying nursing assistants in roles meant for qualified nurses despite their limited legal scope of practice.Meanwhile, the Collector has convened another round of talks with the managements and the striking nurses at 1 p.m. on Saturday (July 11, 2026). Published - July 10, 2026 08:17 pm IST