The President of the Federation of All Indian Medical Association (FAIMA), Dr Suvrankar Datta, told EdexLive in an exclusive interview that the joint national delegation of the Resident Doctors Association (RDA) will meet around 6 pm today, October 10, to decide the protests' plan of action. The delegation reached Kolkata on October 9 to support the protesting junior doctors.
The call for an emergency meeting with the RDA delegation follows an ultimatum FAIMA gave to the West Bengal government, appealing to them to accept the 10 demands of the West Bengal Junior Doctors' Front (WBJDF). The ultimatum was given to the government on October 10 after one of the protestors, Dr Aniket Mahato, collapsed and is in ICU at RG Kar Medical College.
Along with six others, Dr Mahato was on an indefinite hunger strike at Dorina crossing, Kolkata, since October 5. The doctors have completed more than 100 hours of the indefinite hunger strike.
"Given the emergency, the national delegation of RDA has decided to meet and discuss the further course of action today. Although the time is not decided yet, we are certain to meet around 6 pm or 7 pm," Datta told EdexLive.
"Those on protest or indefinite hunger strike have been part of FAIMA and have participated in several national agitations. Now, it is our time to stand by them," he said, stressing that the government is displaying extreme apathy towards the protesting doctors.
"We cannot let our RDA suffer like this; if the government doesn't accept the demands, we will be forced to escalate the protests and opt for extreme methods," Datta said vehemently.
The extreme methods of protest involve:
- Initiate nationwide shutdown of elective services or
- Initiate a Nationwide hunger strike
RDA delegation
According to information shared by the FAIMA president earlier, the Joint National Delegation from RDAs and associations from across India comprises these members:
Dr Suvrankar Datta (AIIMS Delhi)
Dr Sourav Saha (AIIMS Delhi)
Dr Soumit Dey (MAMC Delhi)
Dr Ritwik Ghosh (RML Delhi)
Dr Dipra Biswas (AIIMS Jodhpur)
Dr Debayan (AIIMS Bhopal)
Dr Neelam Saha (Osmania Medical College, Hyderabad)
Dr Anwesha (AIIMS Kalyani, West Bengal)
Dr Souvik Bhattacharya (AIIMS Kalyani, West Bengal)
