Trainee doctors on protest on Monday evening held a meeting with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for more than two hours.
Based on sources, CNN-News18 has now learned that the meeting concluded on rather positive terms and that the administration has received their message.
The doctors had submitted five major charter of demands to the West Bengal government regarding the issue of justice and changes in healthcare sector.
Their demands are action against those involved in the rape and murder of a trainee doctor including former RG Kar Medical College principal Sandip Ghosh’s arrest.
Execution of the rights of the trainee doctor by meting out punishment on all those who rapped and killed her plus eradicating all the evidence.
Thus, the Acts and regulation in motion to initiate disciplinary action against the former principal of RG Kar, Sandip Ghosh.
Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal resigns; Health Secretary Narayan Swaroop Nigam resigns Inadequate protective measures taken on the employees of the health facility Eradicating of ‘threat culture’ dominant in the government healthcare institutions.
They demanded the ouster of Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal and Health Secretary Narayan Swaroop Nigam, collective safety of healthcare professionals, and the complete eradications of ‘threat culture’ of government health care establishments.
The meeting was held after the doctors agreed to meet with the chief minister with two professional transcript writers from their side, who were also a taken to take down the meeting minutes and also take necessary transcripts.
A police pilot car with about 30 Para-medical persons came to Banerjee’s residence around at 6. 20 pm. The meeting in question should have been held at 5 O’ clock in the evening.
The meeting came to a close slightly after 8:45 pm having taken about two and a half hour.
Preconditions
Before the meeting, Banerjee in a live interview with a Bengali news channel urged junior doctors to withdraw the cease work.
“I would again urge the junior doctors to come and attend the talks. There is no issue that cannot be solved through discussions. And we have to find a solution. There is a hearing on this case in the Supreme Court tomorrow i.e., Tuesday and I am hopeful of coming to a solution,” she told News 18 Bangla.
Preventive efforts to address the problem failed in the past as the state government dismissed the physicians’ call for a live broadcast and video recording of the said meeting.
The aggressive medics was later on forced to compromise and now they requested to have the minutes of the meeting taken and be provided with a copy of the signed minutes.
The state government agreed to this condition with the Chief Secretary Manoj Pant saying that both parties will write and sign the minutes to the meeting and both will retain the copies for clarity.
The state government also made arrangements for the two stenographers, who were with the agitating doctors, to go inside the meeting venue for taking the minutes of the meeting.
California’s agitating doctors, however, have stood their ground over the demands.
As for the problem, yes we want it to be solved but not if it entails any form of compromise with the five demand that we have set out for ourselves to seek We are going to the meeting with an open mind to deliberate on all the issues.
Two Key Arrests
In their email, the junior doctors have mentioned two major arrests in this case in which Sandip Ghosh arrested and the officer in-charge of Tala police station arrested. On this basis, they cautioned that certain developments required both parties to videotape the meeting or, if the videotaping of the meeting was not possible, delivering a full video file to the WBJDF representatives after the meeting.
This invitation came as the junior doctors also remained on an indefinite strike against the gruesome rape-murder which happened at Kolkata on 9th August which has now outraged the entire nation. The doctors have kept up their call for justice and accountability as they ensure the population that they shall not call off their strike until they get their five point demands met.