NEW DELHI: In a show of solidarity with the Rajasthan doctors, their counterparts in the city will sport black bands for a week. Doctors’ bodies have called for this symbolic protest to show their support for the protesting doctors who faced ‘police brutality’ while agitating against the controversial Right to Health Bill brought by the Rajasthan government.
“The protest in Rajasthan over the controversial Right to Health Bill has intensified over the past week. The mistreatment of protesting doctors is unacceptable and shows the apathetic and callous nature of the Rajasthan government towards its biggest healthcare assets,” said the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) in a statement.
“…as a mark of our protest we declare the upcoming week (27/03/2023 onwards) as a ‘Black Week, to show our discontent against the bill,” it announced. The Resident Doctors’ Associations in MCD-run health institutions including Bara Hindu Rao Hospital, Kasturba Gandhi Hospital, Swami Dayanand Hospital, and Rajan Babu TB Hospital condemned the “unwarranted police action” on doctors who were “rightfully protesting.”
“We stand in solidarity with doctors in Rajasthan who are raising their genuine concerns. We will participate in black band protests with FORDA, FAIMA and IMA for the rest of the week while discharging our duties in our respective hospitals,” the office-bearers of the RDAs said.
In an unfortunate turn of events, private hospital doctors in Rajasthan had to face a lathi charge by the police while on their way to the state Assembly last week to stage a protest. The doctors have been protesting against the Right to Health Bill which was passed in the Rajasthan Assembly on March 21 amid demonstrations.
The doctors have mainly objected to the clauses that require that patients will be treated for any medical emergency free of cost at both private and government hospitals. The doctors have pointed out that the state has not defined what an emergency is and how the cost of such medical expenses will be reimbursed to private doctors and hospitals.
Many people in Rajasthan, incidentally, feel that the Bill is a step in the right direction so far as the patients are concerned. In many ways, it is a landmark legislation as it makes access to healthcare a legal entitlement of every resident of the state, say activists.
