Kolkata, 17 August 2024 (TDI): Doctors in India have started a national strike, escalating the protest against the rape and murder of a female colleague in the West Bengal city of Kolkata.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA), the country’s largest group of doctors, said all non-essential hospital services would be closed across the country on Saturday.
The IMA described last week’s murder as a “crime of barbaric scale due to the lack of safe spaces for females” and asked for the nation’s support in its “struggle for justice”.
Demonstrations against the attack and demands for the better protection of women have intensified in recent days after a mob vandalised the hospital where it happened.
In a statement, the IMA said emergency and casualty services would continue to open and that the strike would last for twenty four hours.
Doctors at some government hospitals announced earlier this week that they were indefinitely stopping elective procedures.
The IMA also issued a list of demands including the strengthening of the law to better protect medical staff against violence, boosting security at hospitals and the creation of safe spaces for rest.
It called for a professional and meticulous probe into the murder and the prosecution of those involved in vandalizing, as well as compensation for the doctor’s family.
The rape of the 31-year-old female trainee doctor has shocked India.
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Her half-naked body bearing extensive wounds was discovered in a seminar hall at R G Kar Medical College last week after she was reported to have gone there to rest during her shift.
A volunteer who worked at the hospital has been apprehended in connection with the crime.
The case has been transferred from local police to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following criticism at the lack of progress.
