The West Bengal government has invited the junior doctors, agitating over the RG Kar Medical College incident, for a second round of talks at the state secretariat, Nabanna, at 6:30 pm on Wednesday. This comes in response to the medics’ request for further discussions on unresolved issues.

Government’s Appeal Amid Crisis

Chief Secretary Manoj Pant reiterated the government’s appeal for the doctors to return to work, especially in light of the emerging flood-like situation in parts of South Bengal. “Many districts are facing a flood-like situation with vast areas inundated,” Pant stated in an email sent to the doctors, urging them to resume duties in the interest of the public. He also confirmed a meeting with a 30-member delegation of the doctors at Nabanna Sabhaghar.

Key Unresolved Issues

Earlier in the day, the junior doctors wrote to the chief secretary, requesting a meeting to discuss “key unresolved issues” as a precondition to ending their ongoing sit-in outside the state health department headquarters. Their email emphasized concerns about safety and security in hospitals and the specifics of the task force promised by the government to address these issues.

The doctors highlighted that during their previous meeting with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday, certain aspects of their five-point demand—particularly regarding safety, security, and the “prevailing threat culture” in state-run hospitals—remained unresolved. They sought clarity on the functioning of the proposed task force, which is to be headed by the chief secretary.

Agreement on Task Force

The minutes of the earlier meeting confirmed a mutual agreement on setting up a task force comprising the chief secretary, home secretary, Kolkata police commissioner, and other key officials. This task force is tasked with addressing the safety concerns of doctors, including the “persistence of threat culture” on students and trainees at state-run hospitals.

The junior doctors requested an immediate meeting with task force members to discuss the implementation of these measures, as mentioned in their email.

Ongoing Protests

Despite repeated appeals from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to withdraw their ‘cease work,’ which began 40 days ago following the death of a medic at RG Kar Hospital, the doctors have continued their sit-in protest for the last nine days at ‘Swasthya Bhawan.’ They have declared that the protest will continue until their demands are met.

In response to earlier demands, the government transferred Kolkata police chief Vineet Goyal and replaced him with Manoj Kumar Verma, while also removing two senior health department officials. However, the doctors are now demanding the removal of state health secretary N S Nigam, claiming they were verbally assured of this by the chief minister but have yet to see concrete action.

TMC Leader’s Call for Collaboration

Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee also urged the junior doctors to end their agitation and return to work. “As a gesture of goodwill, the doctors should consider calling off the strike and work collaboratively with the government to expedite the implementation of the task force’s initiatives,” Banerjee posted on X (formerly Twitter). He emphasized the need for swift action to ensure accountability for the RG Kar incident, calling for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice.

(With media inputs)