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Anti-reservation stir intensifies
IN A second major anti-quota strike in the past one week the students and junior doctors crippled routine and emergency services at the Swaroop Rani Nehru and SN Children Hospital on Thursday. As many as 20 major surgeries were cancelled and more than 50 serious patients including children were turned away by the agitating medicos. The OPD counters remained closed and the patients admitted to the emergency male and female surgical ward were asked to shift to other hospitals.
IN A second major anti-quota strike in the past one week the students and junior doctors crippled routine and emergency services at the Swaroop Rani Nehru and SN Children Hospital on Thursday.
As many as 20 major surgeries were cancelled and more than 50 serious patients including children were turned away by the agitating medicos. The OPD counters remained closed and the patients admitted to the emergency male and female surgical ward were asked to shift to other hospitals. As many as 3 wards have been closed at SN Children Hospital due to the ongoing agitation of medical students. The rooms of senior consultants and specialist doctors also remained closed causing a lot of inconvenience to the patients coming as far as from Kaushambi and Pratapgarh. Only a handful of staff nurses were found outside the emergency ward to occasionally provide medicines to the patients. Due to ongoing agitation only two patients were left in the female surgical emergency ward. With over 75 per cent patients already shifted to other hospitals most of the general wards wore deserted look.
The junior doctors, undergraduate students and inmates of Sir Sunder Lal, Diamond Jubilee and GN Jha also staged dharna near Emergency and shouted angry slogans against Arjun Singh and Manmohan Singh. A meeting was held to consider the possibility of further extending their strike.
Junior doctors association president Dr Neeraj said they may extend their strike if the government fails to review the reservation policy. He claimed that the teachers, consultants, nurses and paramedical staff were also supporting the strike. The office-bearers of Vyapar Mandal, Bar Council and different other social and literary organisations also contacted us to extend their support to our agitation. "Today we received an anonymous letter along with Rs 500 probably from one of the hospital employee with an appeal to continue the stir," he informed. Dr Neeraj said a delegation of junior doctors from MLN Medical College also participated in the Maharally organised by BHU.
Meanwhile, a 30-year-old bone TB patients Rajkumar was quite disappointed to find that the hospital is closed due to strike. "I came from 50 kms away only to find that the doctors have declared strike. I'll have to come back again on Monday to get the consultation," he said.
Maharally on May 28
THE JUNIOR doctors of MLN Medical College have decided to take out Maharally on May 28 to protest against the quota-based reservation. The rally would start from SRN Hospital at 8 am and pass through Alfred Park, Katra, Manmohan Park and conclude at the DM's residents.
A memorandum addressed to the Prime Minister and the President of India would be handed over to the DM. Not only students but the professionals, retired service men, businessmen and the members of different clubs and organisations would participate in the rally.
"We want to give a message that the quota issue was not only related to the medicos but it would affect the lives of millions of bright students," said Dr Sunil Kumar Shukla.
Indefinite hunger strike
THE INDEFINITE relay hunger strike of the students and junior doctors entered on the third day on Thursday. Rejecting the government's appeal to call off strike the students protested against the 'Mandal-II' and threatened to continue the hunger strike until the reservation policy was reviewed. In the first 12-hour shift the students including Abhimanyu Singh, Indra Mohan Tewari, Priyanka Singh, Saumaya Khanna, Sakshi Tripathi, Rea Singh, Dr Meenakshi, Dr Indra Mullick and Swati Mehrotra observed the hunger strike.
"We have no choice but to continue the hunger strike. The government has even ignored the recommendations of the Knowledge Commission. Showing an insensitive attitude not even a single district administration or a public representative appealed to us to withdraw hunger strike. Moreover why the government wants to give reservation to the OBC when many of them were well off," said Dr Neeraj.
JDA general secretary Dr CS Joshi said this is democracy and not dictatorship to allow the government to implement any arbitrary decisions on the students. "Still we were protesting in a peaceful manner in a hope that the government would listen to their demands," he added.
