Doctors stage mass strike

A leading Indian doctors' association called for a nationwide strike on Monday, stepping up protests by medical staff demanding better security at hospitals after an attack on doctors in Kolkata.

The move could paralyse hundreds of government-run health facilities across India. Thousands of doctors across the country went on a strike yesterday.

The state of West Bengal, of which Kolkata is capital, has been the worst hit by the strike with at least 13 big government hospitals affected.

The protests were launched in response to an attack at the NRS Medical College in Kolkata on Monday that left three junior doctors seriously injured after a dispute with a family whose relative had died.

Doctors demanding better security began a strike but their action was confined to the state. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee condemned them on Thursday, saying police did not strike when one of their colleagues was killed.

Banerjee's remarks, which included a warning that junior doctors would be evicted from their hostels if they did not go back to work, triggered a nationwide reaction.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) said the "barbaric" attack at the NRS reflected a national problem and called for a countrywide protest. It also demanded legislation to safeguard doctors.

Nearly 30,000 doctors were on a one-day strike yesterday, most in West Bengal, New Delhi and the western state of Maharashtra, according to figures proved by medical associations.

The IMA had previously called for a protest on Friday, but later in the day asked for the protests to continue over the weekend, and a nationwide withdrawal of non-essential services in all health care institutions on June 17.

All emergency and casualty services will continue to function, IMA, which represents nearly 350,000 doctors in the country, said.

The federal health minister, Harsh Vardhan, tried to calm the furore, promising better security at hospitals and calling on Banerjee to withdraw her ultimatum.

India spent an estimated 1.4% of its gross domestic product on healthcare in 2017/18, among the lowest proportions in the world. Many millions of Indians depend on the cheap but inadequate public health system.