RG Kar Medical College and Hospital to reopen old emergency ward as gaps in current setup come to light
Telegraph | 26 March 2026
The process to resume operations from the old emergency ward of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital has been initiated, said the hospital's medical superintendent on Wednesday.
The old emergency ward was shut down after it was ransacked on the night of August 14, 2024, days after a third-year postgraduate trainee was raped and murdered at the hospital.
The emergency ward has since been operating from the ground floor of the hospital's trauma care building. Originally, it was intended to be a short-term arrangement lasting a few months. However, the temporary setup has now lasted for 18 months.
The shortfalls in the current emergency unit came into focus after the death of a 61-year-old patient who was asked to visit a pay-and-use toilet outside the building. The patient had come with breathing problems and was bleeding from the nose and mouth.
He walked to the toilet, about 50 metres from the building where he was treated, and collapsed.
The hospital authorities have also asked all lift operators to post pictures while joining their day's duty.
"A common WhatsApp group has been created with hospital officials and lift operators as members. They have to post pictures while taking up duty and other important updates," said an official.
Forty-one-year-old Arup Banerjee was crushed between the doors of an automatic lift that allegedly dragged him up and down repeatedly, with a part of his body outside, early on Friday. He died from the "poly trauma" injuries he suffered. Arup went to the hospital with his wife for his four-year-old son's treatment.
Several junior doctors said that the current emergency setup was inadequate to handle the patient load. There are no ventilators, and the number of oxygen ports is limited. There are no observation rooms, said a doctor.
"It is too early to say when it will be reopened. We have to undertake massive cleaning and renovation. There are pending civil and electrical work," said Saptarshi Chatterjee, the medical superintendent and vice-principal of RG Kar.
"We will plan whether operations will start in phases or all together. The cleaning work will start once we get clearance from investigating agencies," said Chatterjee.
On Wednesday, the college held a meeting with PWD engineers, police officers, and representatives of junior doctors.
"The old emergency ward will be inspected on April 2. A detailed assessment of what needs to be done will be planned after the visit," said Trinesh Mondal, a representative of junior residents.