A junior doctor, who is an inmate in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, fell sick on Saturday after a hunger strike. The doctors had started a hunger strike from 5 September at all medical colleges across the country in protest of the alleged rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor here in August, which had brought medical services to a grinding halt in the country.
Alok Varma, one of the doctors on strike, was admitted to North Bengal Medical College in Siliguri as his health began to deteriorate. He was on hunger strike along with a colleague and had to be hospitalized with a deteriorating condition.
Aniket Mahato, another doctor on protest, has been hospitalized on Friday with symptoms that include severe dehydration, abdominal pain, and the presence of ketones in urine. Dr Soma Mukherjee, who is leading the medical team monitoring Mahato, confirmed his critical condition, saying, “Dr Aniket Mahato has been admitted to the RGKMCH CCU [critical care unit]. His condition is critical. We hope he will respond to treatment. ” However, on Saturday, doctors reported that while Mahato remained critical, his condition was stable and showing signs of improvement.
Other junior doctors who have joined the hunger strike are Snigdha Hazra, Tanaya Panja, Anustup Mukhopadhyay, Arnab Mukhopadhyay, Pulastha Acharya, and Sayantani Ghosh Hazra. And two more doctors from North Bengal Medical College joined them, thereby increasing the number of doctors on an indefinite fast to 10 across West Bengal.
The Indian Medical Association has asked Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to take immediate action. “It needs her immediate intervention, said IMA President RV Asokan. “Safe working environment is not a luxury but a necessity, he added. The Federation of All India Medical Association, too, has threatened nationwide “complete shutdown of medical services” in case anything happens to the protesting junior doctors.
