IMA calls off stir after Shah assurance

TNN | Apr 23, 2020, 05:00 IST

Ranchi: The Indian Medical Association (IMA)’s Jharkhand unit called off its proposed ‘White Alert’ and ‘Black Day’ protests scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday after a central body of doctors met Union home minister Amit Shah through video conferencing.
IMA’s state secretary Dr Pradeep Singh said the outfit wanted the government to take some steps to protect those engagaed in mitigating the crisis. “We have called off the stir because we all need to work together during crisis,” he said.
IG-cum-state police spokesperson Saket Kumar Singh said police are trying to provide security to healthcare providers but the amended Pandemic Diseases Act will strengthen the enforcement agencies.
He said, “Strong laws often act as a deterrent because people understand that they cannot get away by coming out on streets and manhandling the people risking their lives to drive out the epidemic.”
Like in other parts of the country, health workers, para medics and even police personnel have come been assaulted by mobs in Jharkhand while they were on their duty to sanitize areas affected by the novel coronavirus.
Health workers and cleaning staff came under attack at Hindpiri twice when they visited the area for identifying family members of Covid-19 patients. In another incident, police had a tough time bury the body of a Covid-19 casualty due to resistance from the people.
On Monday people in Gandhinagar area, a colony maintained by CCL came out on streets to protest quarantine centre being developed at CCL hospital. In a separate incident an ASI was beaten up by eight men in Sonahatu on Tuesday while the policeman was trying to enforce lockdown.