GMC Srinagar doctors protest against assault on Kolkata doctor

SRINAGAR — Doctors and MBBS students of GMC Srinagar on Saturday staged peaceful protests in Srinagar against the brutal assault on a female doctor in Kolkata.

Doctors supporting the call of the Indian Medical Association for a nationwide withdrawal of medical services protested at GMC Srinagar and demanded justice.

They told the news agency KNO that the safety of doctors, especially young medical professionals who are the backbone of the healthcare system and the future of the country’s healthcare, is of paramount importance and there can be no compromise on it.

They said that new rules must be passed and effectively implemented to guarantee that doctors feel safe and secure in their workplaces.

“We express utmost solidarity with the departed soul. The incident, the improper investigation as well as the violence seen in the aftermath is a devastating tragedy not just for the medical community but for the entire nation and further highlights the dismal condition of doctors’ and women’s safety in our society,” said a protesting doctor.

He said that the government must take steps to provide foolproof security facilities to the doctors, especially those working during night hours.

A female doctor said that due to such incidents, they fear working night shifts and there is a need for the government to come out with a comprehensive security plan inside the hospitals. She said that exemplary action must be taken against the accused persons so that such incidents won’t come to the fore again.

At the GMC auditorium, a two-minute silence was held to express solidarity with the victim.

The protesting doctors stressed GMC administration to take strict action to enhance the security for doctors, especially resident doctors.

They demanded urgent dispensation of justice to the accused in the case, implementation of Central Protection Act, immediate implementation of enhanced security measures in GMC Srinagar and its associated hospitals including 24×7 deployment of security personnel at all hospital checkpoints, indoor wards and OTs, enforcement of gate pass system for attendants and institutional FIR in the event of any violence against doctors and staff on duty.

It is in place to mention here that the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9 has caused nationwide outrage, sparking protests by doctors across the country. During a demonstration against the heinous crime in the early hours of August 15, a mob ransacked parts of the hospital.