Junior Doctors in West Bengal Continue Protests After Meeting with Chief Secretary Manoj Pant
Junior doctors from the West Bengal Junior Doctors Front are continuing their protests after a meeting with Chief Secretary Manoj Pant. Despite initial agreements, the officials later refused to meet all their demands.
Speaking after the meeting, a junior doctor said, “When the meeting was going on, the Chief Secretary agreed to accept all our demands, but after the meeting, our demands were refused as they did not focus on our demands. There were things that were not discussed; they asked us to mail. What is the point of writing mail after holding a meeting? What we wanted was not given to us, and they even refused to provide us in writing. We have submitted our demands, and our protest will continue because we are upset with the meeting.”
Another doctor, Shaintini, added, “Today when we went in, we were very hopeful…for 41 days we have been on streets demanding for basic human rights, justice, and a threat culture to end. We not only demanded our own healthcare facility to improve but also for patient care to improve. When we asked for the meeting, we were told that we needed to email them whatever our needs are and based on that, they would verify that email and will circle back to us with certain central directors. We right now feel very hopeless. We were very hopeful when we walked in…we want the protest to end…we are forced to continue this protest…protest will continue until all our demands are met.”
This came after junior doctors from West Bengal Junior Doctors Front met West Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant to discuss their unfulfilled demands. Earlier, the West Bengal government reached out to the junior doctors and agreed to meet them after their request. Following the meeting with the protesting doctors on Tuesday (September 19), the West Bengal government accepted some of their demands, including the removal of the police chief of Kolkata and two senior health officials. On Wednesday, the officer in charge of Tala Police Station, Abhijit Mondal, was suspended by the Kolkata Police. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had arrested Mondal in connection with RG Kar rape-murder case on September 14.
Doubts Revealed
Junior Doctors -: Junior doctors are doctors who have finished their medical degree but are still in training to become specialists.
West Bengal -: West Bengal is a state in eastern India, known for its rich culture and history.
Protests -: Protests are when people gather to show they are unhappy about something and want changes.
Chief Secretary -: The Chief Secretary is a high-ranking official in the state government who helps make important decisions.
Manoj Pant -: Manoj Pant is the name of the Chief Secretary of West Bengal.
West Bengal Junior Doctors Front -: This is a group of junior doctors in West Bengal who are working together to improve their working conditions and healthcare services.
41 days -: This means the doctors have been protesting for more than a month, which is a long time.
Healthcare facilities -: These are places like hospitals and clinics where people go to get medical help.
Patient care -: This means taking good care of people who are sick or need medical help.
Tala Police Station officer -: This is a police officer from a specific police station in West Bengal who was suspended as part of the doctors’ demands.
