Resident doctors of West Bengal restarted their cease-work agitation on Tuesday (October 1, 2014), alleging that the State government had not taken adequate steps to ensure their security and safety in State-run hospitals.
“In this situation, we are compelled to return to a full ceasework starting from today. Unless we receive clear action from the government on safety, patient services, and the politics of fear, we will have no choice but to continue our full strike,” the West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Front (WBJDF) said.
It was on September 21 that the doctors resumed duties after calling off their cease-work strike that began on August 9, following the rape and murder of a female doctor in Kolkata’s R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital. The protesting doctors, who sought safety and an end to the “threat culture”, had returned to work following assurances from the State government.
In their statement on Tuesday, they reiterated their 10 demands, including the removal of the State’s Principal Health Secretary, establishment of task forces in every medical college, increased police protection in hospitals, and immediate hiring for all staff vacancies.
The WBJDF’s decision comes a day after the Supreme Court hearing where counsel Indira Jaising representing junior doctors informed the Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud that doctors had resumed essential services, including in-patient and out-patient services.
“On September 19, the Chief Secretary assigned the Health Secretary the responsibility to implement all decisions related to structural changes for our safety and patient services. However, even after 11 days, we have seen no visible changes,” the WBJDF said on Tuesday. They highlighted that despite them resuming duty, the Mamata Banerjee government had made little progress on measures such as installing CCTVs, recruiting police, ensuring a centralised referral system or hiring of healthcare workers.
During the Supreme Court hearing on September 30, the counsel representing the West Bengal government said the promised measures would be completed by October 31, and some by October 15.
Protesting junior doctor Aniket Mahato underlined that ensuring safety for healthcare workers would require not just infrastructural measures but strict action against the perpetrators behind the doctor’s rape and murder.
“We are not saying we will resume work only after the implementation of all directives. We had hoped to see a proactive approach by the State government in fulfilling what they had promised us, but they have displayed no willingness to do so,” Dr. Mahato said.
Silent on helplines
He added that the State government had also been silent on the promised helpline numbers, panic button, on-call rooms and other measures that were promised to healthcare workers after the Chief Secretary’s meeting with the WBDJF.
On Tuesday, junior doctors also cited instances of attacks on doctors at the Sagore Dutta Medical College and Hospital (CMSDH) and the National Medical College and Hospital.
“No inquiry committees have been established against the heads of the current threat syndicate in healthcare, and no initiatives have been taken by the government to form elected student councils in colleges,” the junior doctors said on Tuesday.
Unthinkable, says Trinamool
Trinamool Congress leader Kunal Ghosh said the doctors’ decision to go on strike was “unfortunate” considering the flood situation in the Damodar river basin on South Bengal and the Durga Puja festivities. “For them to take this decision despite the Supreme Court directing them to resume work is unthinkable,” he said on Tuesday.
Union Minister and BJP Sukanta Majumdar said the time was right for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to resign, claiming that she was unable to resolve the situation.
Protests in full swing
Healthcare staff and the general public organised a protest march from Kolkata’s College Square to Rabindra Sadan on Tuesday evening demanding justice for the victim, safety for healthcare workers, and an end to threat culture. The march was taken out after nod from the Calcutta High Court.
The WBJDF has called a protest rally at Dharmatala on October 2, in which multiple healthcare workers’ associations and civil society groups such as Joint Platform for Doctors, Reclaim The Night Reclaim The Rights, IT Workers’ Association and Nurses’ Unity will take part. The same day, a statue representing the victim will be unveiled by doctors on the premises of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.
Published - October 01, 2024 08:24 am IST
