Doctors in India threaten strike, demand safety after attack in Kolkata by family of dead patient

Association calling for nationwide strike on Monday, which could paralyse India’s public hospitals and health centres

West Bengal chief minister condemned striking doctors, saying police did not stop work when colleagues were killed

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A woman carries her daughter for treatment at a government hospital during Friday’s strike. Photo: Reuters

Published: 1:38pm, 15 Jun 2019Updated: 9:18pm, 15 Jun 2019

A leading Indian doctors’ association has 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 on Friday.

Doctors protesting in Kolkata on Friday. Photo: AP

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.