Doctors Begin 24-Hour Nationwide Strike Over Kolkata Rape-Murder: 10 Points

New Delhi:
Amid nationwide uproar over the gruesome rape-murder of a trainee doctor at a Kolkata Hospital, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has called for a nationwide strike and withdrawal of non-emergency medical services for 24 hours beginning today.

1. IMA, the largest organisation of doctors in India, has demanded an overhaul of the working and living conditions of resident doctors, including 36-hour shifts and safe places to rest. It sought a central law to prevent violence against medical professionals at workplaces.

2. During the strike, which began at 6 am today and will go on till Sunday, all emergency services will be functional. However, routine OPD services and elective surgeries will not be conducted. 

3. In its statement, the IMA has put forth a list of demands to ensure that security protocols of hospitals “be no less than (that of) an airport”. Hospitals should be declared as safe zones with CCTVs and higher deployment of security personnel, it said.

4. The doctors’ body also called for a thorough, swift investigation of the “barbaric” crime and asked for “appropriate and dignified” compensation to the victim’s family.

5. Key medical student organisations like The All India Medical Students’ Association (AIMSA) and Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA) have joined the nationwide strike.

6. The IMA’s Chandigarh unit has suspended OPD services and will conduct a protest march from 11 am today. In Bengaluru, over 1,000 doctors are likely to participate in a protest at the IMA office.

7. The nationwide strike comes a day after students across Indian cities conducted protest marches and staged dharnas against the alleged inaction over the horrific rape-murder that has sent shockwaves across the country.

8. In Delhi, multiple resident doctors’ associations, including those from AIIMS and Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, gathered at Nirman Bhawan on Friday. Doctors also conducted a candle march at India Gate.

9. Protesting doctors at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, where the horrific crime took place, have expressed dissatisfaction, stating that their demands for justice have not been met. They have accused the police of mishandling the case and the ruling Trinamool Congress government of trying to destroy evidence to shield the accused.

10. The case is now being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) under an order from the Calcutta High Court. “We have identified at least 30 suspects and have started questioning them,” a CBI officer said on Friday.

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