Agitating junior doctors write to Bengal chief secretary, seek meeting on ‘key unresolved’ issues

PTI, Sep 18, 2024, 1:31 PM IST

Kolkata: Agitating junior doctors on Wednesday wrote to West Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant, seeking a discussion on certain “key unresolved issues” like security in hospitals as a pre-condition for lifting their ongoing sit-in outside the state health department headquarters.

The medics shot off an email at 11.19 am with respect to their general body meeting, which concluded early Wednesday morning.

The protesters highlighted issues of safety and security inside state-run hospital premises, and details of formulation and functions of the promised task force headed by the chief secretary, as agenda for the proposed meeting.

“In reference to our last meeting with the CM, we would like to reiterate that there were certain key points regarding our five-point demand, which were unresolved. Particularly our 4th and 5th points, concerning the development of the healthcare system, safety, security and prevailing threat culture,” they stated in the email.

Till information last received, the government was yet to respond to the request for talks.

The minutes of the meeting held between the medics and the government in presence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at her Kalighat residence on Monday night confirmed the mutual agreement of setting up of a task force to implement measures to tackle the safety and security concerns of doctors, which included the “persistence of threat culture” on students and trainees from certain quarters in the power corridors of state-run hospitals.

“The issues regarding safety and security within the hospital and college premises were discussed. The state government proposed that a task force headed by the chief secretary and including the home secretary, the DG Police and CP Kolkata as well as representatives as would be proposed by the junior doctors will look into the related matters,” point number 6 of the minutes read.

“We would like to sit in a meeting with you and other members of the task force today regarding the same. We are eagerly waiting for your positive response,” the e-mail by the doctors stated.

Despite repeated requests from Banerjee to withdraw their ‘cease work’, which has been continuing for the last 40 days since August 9, when the body of a medic was recovered from RG Kar hospital, and resume duties, the protesting doctors have declared intentions to continue with their sit-in before the state health department headquarters – ‘Swasthya Bhawan’ – till their talks conditions were met.

The demonstration before the ‘Swasthya Bhawan’ has been ongoing for the past nine days at a stretch.

Giving in to the medics’ earlier demands, Banerjee transferred Kolkata police chief Vineet Goyal and appointed Manoj Kumar Verma in his place, while also removing two senior health department officials.

The doctors have also demanded the removal of state health secretary N S Nigam, saying they were verbally assured consideration by the chief minister at the Monday meeting, but are “yet to see any steps taken in that regard”.