At the hospital, Monday. (Express Photo: Abhinav Saha)Written by Megha Biswas & Prapti Bhatia
Health services were hit at North Delhi’s Hindu Rao Hospital Monday as resident doctors continued their strike, alleging that attendants of a patient who died assaulted them Saturday. Confusion also persisted over whether the strike has ended or not. While a section of doctors said they have ended it, others said they will wait for 24 hours to see if their demands are met.
Rahul Chaudhary, president of the hospital’s Resident Doctors’ Association, said, “We have ended the strike after we were assured that security will be beefed up. But if our demands are not met, we will resume it.”
RDA vice-president Piyush Singh, however, said the strike will not end till the security in-charge is suspended: “He did not support us in registering an FIR.”
North body commissioner Varsha Joshi said, “A police post will be set up at the hospital. I will take all steps necessary to ensure safety and orderly functioning.”
Doctors have been protesting since Sunday after two of their colleagues were allegedly beaten up by relatives of a patient who died.
Patients, meanwhile, faced the brunt as the facility is one of the busiest in the city. Ratan, a resident of Sonia Vihar who had a headache, said: “I came in the morning but doctors did not treat me till the afternoon.”
(The writers are interns with The Indian Express)
