Hospitals across India have emotionally responded by shutting down their services, except for emergencies, as a form of protest and outrage over the brutal rape and murder of a doctor in Kolkata. It conveys the intensity of the medical community’s reaction to the tragic incident.
Over a million doctors were anticipated to participate in a nationwide strike, disrupting medical services across India.
Hospitals reported that faculty from medical colleges were assigned to handle emergency cases.
The strike, which commenced at 6 a.m. (0030 GMT), halted elective procedures and out-patient consultations, as stated by the Indian Medical Association.
The protest was sparked by the rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor last week at a Kolkata medical college where she was employed.
This incident has ignited nationwide protests among doctors, drawing comparisons to the infamous 2012 gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student on a bus in New Delhi.
A heavy police presence was observed on Saturday outside RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata, where the crime occurred, while the hospital premises remained largely deserted, as reported by ANI news agency.
West Bengal’s Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has expressed support for the statewide protests, urging that the investigation be expedited and calling for the harshest possible punishment for those responsible.
Private clinics and diagnostic centers across Kolkata stayed closed on Saturday, with Dr. Sandip Saha, a local pediatrician, stating that he would only see patients in emergencies.
Hospitals and clinics in cities like Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Chennai, and others also participated in the strike, marking one of the largest hospital shutdowns in recent memory.
Dr. Prabhas Ranjan Tripathy, additional medical superintendent at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Bhubaneswar, reported that patients in Odisha were facing long waits as senior doctors worked to manage the increased demand.
He explained that the resident doctors’ strike has put significant pressure on senior staff, intensifying the challenges faced by the healthcare system.
Strong Punishment Required
Patients lined up at hospitals, many unaware that the strike would prevent them from receiving medical care.
“I have spent 500 rupees ($6) on travel to come here. I have paralysis and a burning sensation in my feet, head, and other parts of my body,” an unnamed patient at SCB Medical College Hospital in Cuttack, Odisha, told local television. “We were not aware of the strike. What can we do? We have to return home.”
Raghunath Sahu, 45, who was waiting at SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack, told Reuters that the daily patient quota set by doctors had been reached by mid-morning.
“I have brought my ailing grandmother. They did not see her today. I will have to wait for another day and try again,” Sahu said as he left the queue.
India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is looking into the rape and murder case and has summoned several medical students from RG Kar College to clarify the details of the crime, according to a Kolkata police source. The CBI also questioned the hospital’s principal on Friday.
Following the Delhi gang rape, India’s government implemented significant reforms to the criminal justice system, including stricter sentencing.
However, campaigners argue that these changes have not been effective. The continued rise in violence against women has sparked protests from doctors and women’s groups.
“Women form the majority of our profession in this country. Time and again, we have asked for safety for them,” IMA President R. V. Asokan informed Reuters on Friday.
The Indian Medical Association has called for stronger legal protections for healthcare workers and a swift investigation into the “barbaric” crime in Kolkata.
Senior criminal lawyer Shobha Gupta, who represented a gang rape victim from the 2002 Gujarat riots, highlighted the need for severe punishment:
“Punishment certainly is needed (and it) has to be a very harsher punishment, but at that same time the execution, the final culmination of the punishment should take place. And that is not happening.”
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