Amitha Reji George, Pune
On October 8, doctors from RG Kar Medical College submitted their resignations in support of their fellow protestors. In a show of support, at least fifty prominent doctors have resigned. The heads of the state-run hospital’s several departments met on Tuesday morning and decided to step down.
“At the HoDs’ meeting today, this was decided. Our hospital’s fifty top doctors have all written their letters of resignation. This is to convey our sympathy towards those young physicians who are fighting for a cause,” a senior doctor told PTI. According to him, top doctors of NRS Medical College and Hospital were considering joining their RG Kar hospital colleagues.
Tuesday’s Durga Puja celebrations saw junior doctors continue their “fast-unto-death” for a fourth day in a row. During this period, the platform said in a statement that there had been “no response from the appropriate authority to solve the issues.” For two rallies in the evening, their older counterparts also joined them. Concerning the health of people who are fasting to death, the doctor’s platform stated that they are fighting for “campus democracy and a patient-friendly system.”
The Joint Platform of Doctors, West Bengal, promised support for the junior medical professionals who have been calling for an end to the “corruption-ridden” healthcare system and justice for the rape and demise of the lady doctor at R G Kar Hospital.
Doctors have put out a 10-point charter of demands that center on strengthening hospital security, combating a culture of intimidation, and promoting patient care. Junior physicians in West Bengal have refused to let up on their fast-until-death protest, even in spite of government requests for them to resume their duties. About fifteen well-known doctors participated in a symbolic hunger strike at Kolkata’s Dorina Crossing as a show of support.
In response to an attack on their colleagues at the College of Medicine and Samore Medical College, junior doctors at the medical college continued to cease all work on October 1.
The brutal rape and killing of a female trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9 became the spark for the doctors’ protest.