RG Kar rape-murder case: Junior doctors call off protest partially, to resume emergency services from Sept 21

RG Kar protest

Junior doctors agitating over RG Kar murder late on September 19 said they are partially calling off their 41-day long sit-in protest and will restart emergency and essential services from Saturday, NDTV reported.

However, the doctors will continue to stay away from OPD services and cold cases till they are assured of state government's commitment to safety of healthcare professionals.

The move comes following West Bengal government's appointment of Manoj Kumar Verma as the new Kolkata Police chief, replacing Vineet Goyal, and the removal of two senior health department officials, giving in to the medics' earlier demands.

On September 19, Verma visited RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, where a postgraduate trainee doctor was raped and murdered on August 9, sparking nationwide protests and prompting junior doctors of West Bengal to launch 'cease work'.

Accompanied by Dipak Sarkar, who has replaced Abhishek Gupta as Deputy Commissioner of Police (North Division), Verma stayed at the hospital premises for over 30 minutes where he visited the scene of crime on the second floor of the Emergency block and met hospital authorities at the administrative building of the state-run tertiary healthcare facility.

Yesterday, the doctors refused to end the strike, calling the state's administrative measures "only partial victory" of their movement. They had also demanded discussions on safety and security of doctors inside hospital premises and including a thorough rundown on how the government wants to spend the Rs 100 crore it has allocated for tightening doctors' safety in state-run hospitals.