LAGATAR24 NETWORK
Dhanbad, May 15: The MBBS students of Shahid Nirmal Mahto Medical College Hospital (SNMMCH) Dhanbad took out a silent candle march on Sunday evening in protest against the brutal murder of female doctor Dr Vandana Das in Kattarakkara Tualuk Hospital.
Boy and girl MBBS students assembled at the administrative building of the college in the evening at 7.30 pm and took out a candle procession from the campus ( medical college) to Steel Gate Saraidhela in protest of the incident and returned back from there.
The students condemned the incident and demanded the implementation of the Medical Protection Act (MPA) immediately in Jharkhand in the wake of the Kerala incident.
The MBBS students of the 2020 batch, who were leading the ‘candle march’, said that the Kerala hospital incident has rocked doctors across the country and they are feeling unsafe. Before such an incident takes place in Jharkhand, the state government must implement MPA for instilling a sense of safety among medicos.
On May 10 surgeon ( Dr) Vandana Das was stabbed to death by a patient with a surgical instrument in Kottarakkara Taluk Hospital at Kolham in Kerala.
“ We urge the state government of Jharkhand to take lessons from the Kerala hospital incident and initiate pre-empt steps so that doctors in the state could feel safe from any untoward incident”, said MBBS students.
In the wake of the May 10 incident, the Kerala state government has announced to introduce an ordinance to amend Hospital Protection Act.
MBBS students on the occasion questioned whether the government would take a step for the safety of doctors only after the Kerala-like hospital tragedy takes place in Jharkhand.
At the meeting held after the candle march to condole the murder of Dr Vandana, the MBBS students of SNMMCH Dhanbad also resolved to send a memorandum through the principal of the college Dr Jyotiranjan Prasad to the chief minister, health minister and additional chief secretary (ACS) health for immediate implementation of Medical Protection Act.
Interestingly on May 8, Indian Medical Association (IMA) state president Dr AK Singh and secretary Dr Pradeep Kumar Singh sent a letter to chief minister Hemant Soren for clearing MPA in the interest of health services.
The Jharkhand Health Service Association (JHSA), the frontal organization of government doctors, Secretary Dr Tahkur Mritunjay Kumar Singh had also urged the government for immediate implementation of MPA, which is pending in the Select Committee of Assembly.
