Mamata Banerjee-Doctors’ Meeting Reaches Consensus

The West Bengal government has agreed to enhance the infrastructure of state-run hospitals, a key demand from junior doctors protesting the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

This consensus was reached during a meeting between West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the doctors at her residence in South Kolkata’s Kalighat area on Monday.

Sources reveal that Mamata Banerjee has urged the doctors to end their strike and return to work, citing the Supreme Court hearing on the matter scheduled for Tuesday. The ongoing strike has been causing public inconvenience, she noted.

The doctors have maintained their demand for live-streaming of the meeting and reiterated their call for the removal of top health department officials, including the state health secretary and the Kolkata Police Commissioner.

The junior doctors arrived at Mamata Banerjee’s residence after receiving a “fifth and final” invitation for the meeting. The previous meeting had failed to occur due to disagreements over live-streaming.

A letter from West Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant stated, “This is the fifth and final time we are reaching out for a meeting between the Honourable Chief Minister and your delegates.”

The doctors had insisted on recording the minutes of the meeting by both parties. Although the state government had previously rejected the demand for live-streaming, it has agreed to share the minutes of the meeting with the doctors.

The government has invited the same delegation of doctors who met the Chief Minister at her Kalighat home on September 14. The protesting doctors had previously met Mamata Banerjee briefly while continuing their protests, demanding justice for the horrific rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at RG Kar hospital. This meeting followed her surprise visit to the protest site near Swasthya Bhavan the same day, where she assured the doctors that their demands would be addressed.

The doctors have been staging a sit-in outside Swasthya Bhavan since September 10, demanding better security at state-run hospitals and the removal of top officials responsible for the rape and murder, which has sparked nationwide protests.

Aakhir Tak Editor-in-Chief

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