Mamata Banerjee accepts key demands of agitating junior doctors, but 'ceasework' protests to continue
- In Reports
- 11:10 AM, Sep 17, 2024
- Myind Staff
In a significant development, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accepted the bulk of the demands made by junior doctors, who have been on strike for 38 days over the alleged rape and murder of a postgraduate intern at RG Kar Medical College. Following a late-night meeting at her Kalighat residence, Banerjee announced the transfer of several top officials, including Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal, along with key personnel from the state health department.
The Chief Minister also declared the removal of the Director of Medical Education (DME), the Director of Health Services (DHS), and the Deputy Commissioner (North Division), who allegedly offered money to the parents of the victim. "We will announce the name of the new police commissioner after 4 pm on Tuesday after the scheduled Supreme Court hearing," Banerjee said just after midnight.
The decisions were recorded in the minutes of the meeting, which was signed by Chief Secretary Manoj Pant and a delegation of 42 doctors representing the striking junior medics. "We have accepted almost all demands of the doctors. Keeping in mind the plight of the common people, we did the best we could. I now appeal to the doctors to return to work," Banerjee said, assuring that no disciplinary action would be taken against the protestors.
However, the doctors have indicated that the protests will continue until the promises are fulfilled. "We will decide our next steps after the Supreme Court hearing and once we confirm that the government has issued the promised transfer orders," said Dr. Debasish Halder, one of the leaders of the movement.
Dr. Aniket Mahato, another protest leader, emphasised that the Chief Minister had yet to agree to all of their demands. "While the CM has accepted our demand to remove the CP, DC (North), the DHS, and DME, she is yet to agree on removing the principal secretary of the health department or the DC (Central). The discussions on the operating threat syndicate in hospitals and the thriving corruption racket remain incomplete. We only have verbal assurances on those matters so far," Mahato said.
The signed minutes also included a ₹100 crore infrastructure development fund for hospitals, reforms to make patient welfare committees more inclusive, and the formation of a special task force to address safety and security in hospitals. The task force will be led by the chief secretary and include key state officials and representatives of junior doctors.
Despite these concessions, protestors stressed that more action was needed. "Such measures are ineffective until a democratic work atmosphere returns to hospitals with simultaneous uprooting of threats and corruption nexus," one doctor said.
Celebrations erupted early Tuesday morning at the protest site outside Swasthya Bhawan, with demonstrators playing drums and blowing conch shells.
The breakthrough came after four failed attempts to resolve the standoff, with junior doctors compromising on their earlier demand for live-streaming the meetings. Instead, they agreed to the recording of minutes and a signed copy of the proceedings.
Meanwhile, doctors continued their sit-in at Swasthya Bhawan, demanding justice for the RG Kar victim and the removal of key officials. Senior doctors from RG Kar Medical College also raised concerns about the handling of the case, calling for an expedited investigation by the CBI and Supreme Court to bring the culprits to justice.
Image source: CNBC TV18
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