Despite the conclusion of a 24-hour strike called by the country’s largest association of doctors, junior doctors in many Indian hospitals remained on the job on Sunday ( Aug 18 ), demanding swift justice for a colleague who was raped and murdered.
After the killing of the 31-year-old doctoral student of chest medicine on August 9 in the eastern city of Kolkata, doctors across the country have protested, marched, and canceled their non-emergency patients in protest.
People activists claim the affair at the British-era R G Kar Medical College and Hospital has highlighted how people continue to suffer in India despite tougher laws in the wake of the 2012 gang-rape and death of a 23-year-old student on a moving vehicle.
The victim’s papa, who cannot be identified under Indian laws, told investigators late on Saturday, referring to the protesting specialists,” My child is gone but thousands of sons and daughters are now with me.” This has given me a lot of power, and I believe we will get from it.
After the 2012 strike, India made significant changes to the criminal justice system, including tougher words, but politicians claim that much has changed and that not enough has been done to stop violence against women.
The Indian Medical Association ( IMA ), whose strike ended on Sunday at 6 a.m. local time ( 0030 GMT ), advised Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he needed to step in to ensure hospital staff were protected by security measures akin to those at airports.
” All care specialists deserve relaxing atmosphere, safety and security at workplace”, it wrote in a text to Modi.
“COULD STOP EMERGENCY SERVICES”
While creating a commission to recommend measures to improve safety for healthcare professionals, the government has urged doctors to return to work in order to address rising dengue and malaria cases.
Most physicians resumed their normal activities, IMA authorities said, although Sunday is typically a holiday for non-emergency instances.
” The physicians are up to their routine”, said Dr Madan Mohan Paliwal, the IMA head in the most populous state, Uttar Pradesh. If the government does n’t take any drastic measures to protect doctors,” the next course of action will be decided,” and we could stop emergency services as well.
However, the Joint Action Forum for All India People and Junior Doctors announced on Saturday that a “nationwide cease-work” may be continued with a 72-hour date for authorities to launch an in-depth investigation and make arrests.
Junior medics and volunteers at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Bhubaneswar, according to Dr. Prabhas Ranjan Tripathy, more medical director.
” The rallies are there now too”, he told Reuters. There is a lot of pressure on other people because of the lack of labor.
More than a year of anger and rallies have shook R G Kar Hospital. Police put up riot gear and deployed officers in riot gear around the doctor for a week after the council of five or more individuals.
Blocking meetings, presentations and festivities was justified to avoid “breach of peace, problems of the common tranquillity”, Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal said in an attempt.
Due to the heavy rain in the area, Reuters reporters observed no doctors on Sunday at their customary opposition site around the medical gates.