The medical superintendent of R G Kar Hospital was removed from his position on Sunday, days after a female post graduate trainee doctor was raped and murdered while on duty at the hospital. Meanwhile, protests demanding quick punishment of the culprits responsible continued for the third day on Sunday, affecting services in government hospitals across Bengal. According to sources, the hospital superintendent, Dr. Sanjay Vasishth has been replaced by Dr. Bulbul Mukhopadhyay, who is the dean of the hospital and also a member of the 11-member inquiry committee formed to investigate the rape and murder. Protesters had demanded the removal of the principal, but instead, the authorities decided to remove the superintendent in an attempt to pacify the situation.
The incident at R G Kar Hospital has led to a strike by doctors in other medical colleges and hospitals across the state, causing difficulties for patients, many of whom are returning without receiving treatment. To address this, on Sunday, the Director of Medical Education(DME) issued an order instructing all doctors to return to work immediately. This order applies to doctors at all levels of hospitals, including block, district, and headquarters hospitals. The Director of Medical Education’s order also mentions that all hospitals must reopen their outpatient departments (OPD) starting Monday. The responsibility for ensuring this lies with the MSVP, or Medical Superintendent of the individual hospitals.
However, according to Rabiyul Islam, representing the Resident Doctors’ Association, they will not comply with this directive, and all doctors on the payroll will continue their strike. Meanwhile, the repercussions of the R G Kar Hospital incident are being felt nationwide. The All India Federation of Doctors’ Associations has announced a protest programme starting Monday. The Resident Doctors’ Association has also called for nationwide protests. They plan to write to the Prime Minister, the Union Home Minister, and the Health Minister, arguing that health education is a joint responsibility and that the central government cannot evade its responsibility for incidents like the one at R G Kar. Doctors’ organisations are gearing up to demand proper security for doctors and nurses in every hospital across the country.
In this regard, the President of Bengal BJP, Sukanta Majumdar, has already written to BJP’s National President J.P. Nadda, requesting that he inspect the state’s government hospitals. Meanwhile the R G Kar Hospital administration has cancelled all leaves for doctors and non-medical staff due to the recent situation at the hospital. In a notice, the R G Kar administration announced that this order would take effect immediately. However, those whose leave had already been approved will not be required to return to work immediately. From Tuesday, the Resident Doctors’ Association has called for a nationwide protest. They have decided to shut down several hospital services throughout the day. The organisation mainly intends to halt “elective services,” meaning planned hospital services, especially surgeries that were scheduled in advance, will be cancelled.
However, emergency services will remain operational. In protest against the R.G. Kar Hospital incident, doctors at several government hospitals across the state, including Kolkata, continued their strike on Sunday. The strike is ongoing not only at R G Kar but also at Calcutta Medical College, National Medical College, and Burdwan Medical College. While services have partially resumed in some places, the atmosphere of protest and agitation persists even on Sunday.