Five years after the West Bengal government pledged to enhance security for doctors, the promised measures have not been implemented. This matter gains significant in the aftermath of the Kokata rape and murder case which shook the nation and led to incessant protests with medics demanding central law to ensure their safety. News agency Reuters cited an internal government memo as revealing that the state government had promised improved security at public hospitals, including better equipment, female guards, and controlled entry points, following previous incidents of violence against doctors.
Despite these assurances, these measures were notably absent at R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital, where a young female doctor was sexually assaulted and killed on August 9. Trainee doctors at the hospital reported to Reuters that only two male guards were present, supplemented by a few closed circuit cameras that did not cover the entire premises. Additionally, they noted that one of the doors to the lecture hall where the doctor was attacked had no lock, and the air conditioning in the designated break room was malfunctioning.
The internal memo, dated June 17, 2019, was drafted following a meeting between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and trainee doctors who were protesting similar incidents. The document, according to Reuters' report, directed officials to implement "effective and prompt" actions but did not specify the timeframe for these measures.
The meeting was held in the backdrop of a protest after two doctors at a different hospital were assaulted by a patient's relatives in 2019. West Bengal government had assured installation of "effective security equipment and systems," regulation of entry and exit to hospital premises, and creating a compensation policy for assaulted staff, as per the state health department memo cited by Reuters.
Dr Riya Bera, a postgraduate trainee at R.G. Kar, expressed her frustration, stating, "If those measures had been taken, this incident may never have happened."
In response to queries about the 2019 commitments, West Bengal Health Secretary N.S. Nigam attributed the delays to the COVID-19 pandemic but assured that significant improvements, such as enhanced CCTV coverage and private security, have been made since 2021. "We are committed to doing the remaining work and filling the gaps that emerged after the R.G. Kar incident," he added, as per the report.
In response to the ongoing crisis, Chief Minister Banerjee announced on August 28 that a slew of measures including better lighting, resting spaces, and additional female security staff.
Kolkata Junior Doctors Demand Police Commissioner’s Resignation
Meanwhile, junior doctors in Kolkata have continued their protest against the police. Junior doctors staged a sit-in near the police headquarters Lalbazar on Monday, demanding the resignation of Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal, news agency PTI reported. The protest began after the medics were prevented from marching further by the police. The demonstrators set up their sit-in on BB Ganguly Street around 5 pm, insisting that Goyal meet them there.
The protesters alleged police inaction regarding vandalism at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on 14 August. In response, the police offered a meeting with a 20-member delegation of doctors, but this proposal did not resolve the standoff. The junior doctors, holding national flags and placards with slogans for justice and protection, celebrated the arrest of former RG Kar Hospital principal Sandip Ghosh by the CBI.
Earlier, the protesters were stopped by guardrails erected by police on BB Ganguly Street, leading to Lalbazar. They argued that their rally was peaceful and that representatives merely wished to meet the police commissioner. The protesters carried a replica of a spine and red roses, symbolising their demand for police protection. They also burned an effigy of the police commissioner and raised slogans calling for exemplary punishment for those involved in the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Hospital. The case had been transferred to the CBI by the Calcutta High Court after initial police investigation was deemed insufficient.
A significant police presence and additional security measures, including chained and padlocked guardrails, were in place to prevent the rally from reaching the police headquarters.