Kumar Bahukhandi
NEW DElHI :
Doctors’ protest Government to form panel to propose safety measures for healthcare professionals IMA also seeks PM Modi’s intervention
The government on Saturday August 17 said a committee will be formed to propose safety measures for healthcare professionals even as OPD services were hit across the country as doctors joined the 24-hour nationwide strike called by the IMA to protest the alleged rape and murder of a trainee medic in Kolkata. Resident doctors at Government hospitals in different parts of the country, including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Maharashtra, and Haryana among others, have been protesting since Monday August 12 . The Indian Medical Association (IMA) had given a nationwide call for the withdrawal of non-emergency services for 24 hours from 6 am on Saturday to protest the gruesome rape and murder at the R G Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata and the subsequent vandalism at the facility.
The IMA also sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention in realising their five demands, including a central law to check violence against healthcare personnel and declaring hospitals safe zones with mandatory security entitlements. On Saturday, the Union Health Ministry said representatives of all stakeholders, including the State Governments, will be invited to share their suggestions with the committee as it urged the doctors to resume their duties in the larger public interest and in view of the rising number of dengue and malaria cases.
Representatives of the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA), IMA and resident doctors’ associations of Government medical colleges and hospitals of Delhi met the Union health Minister in the wake of the Kolkata incident. Reacting to the development, the IMA said it is studying the statement released by the Health Ministry assuring doctors of all possible efforts to ensure their safety and offering to form a committee to suggest measures for the same .
The IMA said it will respond to it after careful consideration of all aspects and consultations with its state branches. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said everyone was concerned about the rape and murder of the doctor in Kolkata and not just the healthcare fraternity. Rijiju was speaking to reporters at the Bhubaneswar airport in Odisha. In West Bengal, the epic entre of the protest ,the former principal of RGKar Medical College and Hospital Dr Sandip Ghosh appeared before the CBI for questioning for the second consecutive day on Saturday August 17 in connection with the horrific incident. Ghosh reached the CBI office for the second time a little before 10.30 am but doctors protest is still on.
