Doctors hold nationwide protest condemning Kolkata doctor rape-murder case

New Delhi: In solidarity with the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata, doctors and representatives of various medical organisations have announced protests at various locations in the country.
The Resident Doctors Association, Government Medical College in Amritsar, Punjab has announced suspension of all non-essential and elective hospital services, including Out Patient Departments, Operating Theaters and wards, beginning on August 16 and continuing until further notice.
They has also announced the suspension of all non-essential and elective hospital services on Friday.
Doctors have been staging protests outside Guru Nanak Dev Hospital in Amritsar.
The Kerala Medical Postgraduates Association (KMPGA) along with resident doctors associations of Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Regional Cancer Centre (RCC), Dental PG association, House Surgeons association and Students unions of various medical colleges has called for a 24-hour strike in Kerala.
All Undergraduate and Postgraduate medical, dental and paramedical students have been carrying out silent protests inside the Nair Hospital premises demanding safe and secure environments in government medical colleges and hospitals. Out Patient Department services have been shut down.
Doctors of the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital in Tamil Nadu's Trichy have been protesting wearing black badges as a mark of protest.
"To condemn the death of the female doctor at RG Kar Medical Hospital and College and to further ensure the safety of the medical personnel, we are holding this protest. We request the central government to conduct an enquiry in a proper way and punish the criminals as soon as possible. The medical professionals must be provided with two-tier security this will also encourage more students to opt for medicines," said Dr Aruleeswaran, Trichy Doctors Association.
Junior doctors and medical students at RML Hospital in the national capital staged a protest.
A 12-hour general strike has been called in Siliguri by the Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist). The strike disrupted normal life in Siliguri and most shops in the city were closed since 6 pm of Thursday.
A member of SUCI (Communist) Dr Shahriar Alam said, "Today this strike has a huge impact. People have spontaneously responded to our call and throughout Siliguri like the Medical College area, people have not taken out their vehicles, and they have not opened the shops. We can say that the impact is very good. We have called this strike to protest against the heinous incident at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital."