The medicos in Rajasthan are planning to shut down OPD (Outpatient Department) for two hours on Saturday, February 8, 2025, in a pen-down protest condemning the delay in filing an FIR (First Information Report) against Sedwa's Subdivisional Magistrate (SDM) who misbehaved with a doctor on duty.
The incident, which occurred on February 1, involved a confrontation between SDM Badri Narayan Vishnoi and a doctor at a primary health clinic (PHC) in the district.
As seen in the viral video, Vishnoi aggressively ordered a doctor to attend to a patient in the emergency ward and threatened him with police action. The doctor repeatedly informed him that he had already attended to the patient and reminded him of 250 other patients in the outpatient department. Despite this, the SDM's aggressive attitude continued, and now, his misbehaviour has sparked outrage in the medical community.
The police refused to register an FIR, adding fuel to the fire. Condemning the incident, the United Doctors’ Front (UDF), which launched a state-wide black badge protest on February 3, is continuing the protest until tomorrow, Friday, February 7.
With days passing by and inaction from the government continuing, the front called for a meeting today, February 6, and it was decided that they would call for a shut down of the OPD for two hours on Saturday, February 8, from 9 am to 11 am.
Discussing more details, Dr Arun Kumar, National General Secretary of the UDF, said, "Following Saturday's protest, if the government fails to take action, we will call for a complete shutdown of medical health services, excluding elective services in Rajasthan."
