Jodhpur medicos on 12-hour hunger strike in support of protesting Kolkata doctors

Coming in support of protesting doctors in Kolkata who are demanding justice in the RG Kar rape and murder case, the medical professionals from Jodhpur in Rajasthan on Tuesday started a 12-hour hunger strike.

The strike started at 6 a.m. and will end at 6 p.m. Besides the resident doctors, private doctors and other organisations have also extended their support.

Doctors said that the 12-hour hunger strike was being staged in protest over the increasing violence against them. They said that doctors are attacked almost every day and they don't feel safe. If special laws for doctors are not implemented in time, then such protests of doctors will be seen, they added.

In the wake of protests by doctors, the medical college administration was also on alert mode and was closely monitoring the situation, while making alternative arrangements. Also, they are reviewing arrangements in all three hospitals of Jodhpur, including Mathuradas Mathur Hospital, Ummed Hospital, and Mahatma Gandhi Hospital. Apart from this, the district administration is also constantly monitoring this matter. The hunger strike was being staged outside the medical college. Veteran doctors including Pradeep Jain, Siddharth Lodha and Ghulam Ali Kamdar were sitting on a hunger strike during this protest.

Speaking from the protest site, Pradeep Jain said, "We, the doctors, are being mistreated despite serving for long hours. Even the doctor who was brutally raped in Kolkata was serving her patients while being on 36 hours of duty. We lost a hard-working professional who was dedicated to society. It takes years to become a doctor."

He further criticised the apathy of the West Bengal government and said, "All our doctors are standing in support of her family showing their solidarity, however, the Bengal government seems adamant on the issue," he added.

"Now, we want our safety. When politicians, leaders and administration stop listening to us, we have to act on our own. Our working place should have security. Our working females should also have full security. Resident doctors serve patients for around 72 hours. If any mistake happens after serving for these long hours, people vandalise hospitals. Such treatment is not good and hence we are here to raise our concerns in this direction," said Siddharth Lodha, another doctor from the city.

It needs to be mentioned here that doctors in Kolkata are protesting and demanding justice for the woman doctor of R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital who was raped and murdered in August. The doctors are also demanding an improvement in their security at the hospitals and the immediate removal of West Bengal State Health Secretary N.S Nigam. Their other demands include the establishment of a centralised referral system for hospitals and medical colleges, the implementation of a bed vacancy monitoring system, and the formation of task forces to ensure essential provisions such as CCTV, on-call rooms, and washrooms at the workplace.