Senior doctors of R.G. Kar Medical College tender mass resignation in support of protesting resident doctors

As seven doctors remain on indefinite hunger strike, senior doctors of other State-run medical colleges in Kolkata have also hinted at mass resignations if the government does not initiate a discussion with resident doctors by today

As resident doctors continue their hunger strike across Kolkata, over 40 senior doctors of R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital, (RGKMCH) including professors and heads of departments, signed a mass resignation letter on Tuesday (October 8m, 2024) in a show of support to agitating junior doctors.

“We, senior doctors of R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital. are giving mass resignation as the government seems to be oblivious of the deteriorating condition of the doctors on hunger strike, and if the situation demands, we will also go for individual resignation,” the letter addressed to the Director of Medical Education and Ex. Officio secretary of the Department of Health and Family Welfare reads. 

However, shortly after signing the mass resignation letter, a senior faculty member of RGKMCH clarified that the doctors would not stop work immediately and would continue offering services to patients for the time-being.

“Our junior doctors have been protesting for the past two months, and observing a hunger strike for three days. Their health is deteriorating… Our primary objective is to send a message to the State administration so they initiate a discussion with the junior doctors,” the faculty member added.

Resident doctors across West Bengal, who have been protesting against the rape and murder of a female doctor at RGKMCH on August 9, resumed work on October 5, after two cease-work strikes. Additionally, seven resident doctors from different medical colleges have been on an indefinite hunger strike for over 60 hours since Saturday until their demands are met. Those include justice for the victim, increased police protection in State-run hospitals and medical colleges, security infrastructure like CCTV cameras and on-call rooms, a centralised referral system, etc.

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“The moment our senior faculty members tendered their mass resignation, the principal of RGKMCH, Manas Kumar Bandopadhyay, was called to the State secretariat… We hope the government will meet our 10-point demands soon,” said Kinjal Nanda, a resident doctor of RGKMCH.

He added that senior faculty members of RGKMCH who resigned today want the State government to take a prompt and proactive approach to fulfilling the demands so that the junior doctors can end their indefinite hunger strike.

Meanwhile, senior doctors of other State-run medical colleges in Kolkata have also hinted at following suit, with faculty members of Medical College, Kolkata (MCK) threatening mass resignation if the government does not sit down for a discussion with resident doctors by Wednesday.

“The government should invite junior doctors for a discussion. A lot can be resolved at the discussion table. If they do not do so by tomorrow, we will be compelled to mass resign in a show of support for our juniors,” a senior faculty member of MCK said in a public announcement on Tuesday (October 8, 2024). 

In addition to the seven resident doctors on an indefinite hunger strike since Saturday, innumerable junior doctors in medical colleges and private practitioners across the State on Tuesday also observed 12-hour and 24-hour fasts while on duty, to show solidarity with the junior doctors’ demands.

On Monday, West Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant had appealed to the agitating doctors to end their hunger strike and resume duty, adding that the government is “working towards improving the working environment of hospitals and medical colleges”. 

Protest rallies

Amid Durga Puja festivities, junior and senior doctors took to the streets in South and Central Kolkata on Tuesday, with two protest rallies originating from the premises of the Institute of Post-Graduate Medical Education and Research, and MCK.

This follows the Kolkata Police denying permissions to doctors for a protest rally on the initially proposed route in Central Kolkata between MCK and Esplanade on Tuesday, citing possible traffic congestion owing to Durga Puja festivities in two major pandals at the adjacent College Square and Santosh Mitra Square.

“Your programme at the referred venue on the eve of puja will cause great inconvenience to the public and severe disruption which may lead to a serious law & order problem,” the email from the Kolkata Police read.

“The police were very firm with their decision in not allowing the rally. But we went forward with it nonetheless, maintaining a clear path for traffic to move,” said Udita Nag, a senior doctor who was in communication with police regarding permissions for Tuesday’s rallies. Dr. Nag is one of the doctors on 24-hour hunger strike since Monday evening.

Published - October 08, 2024 04:49 pm IST