Kolkata: The first round of talks between the West Bengal government and the agitating junior doctors began at Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s residence in Kalighat Monday evening to address the RG Kar impasse.
After four unsuccessful bids to initiate a dialogue to resolve the deadlock, a delegation of agitating junior doctors arrived at Banerjee’s residence for the crucial talks.
The previous attempts to resolve the issue got stuck due to the state government’s rejection of the doctors’ demand for live-streaming and video recording of the meeting.
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The agitating medics later agreed to a compromise, now only asking to record the minutes of the meeting and receive a signed copy.
The state government accepted this condition, with Chief Secretary Manoj Pant saying both parties will sign the minutes of the meeting and share copies for clarity.
Meanwhile, the doctors continued their sit-in outside Swasthya Bhawan, the headquarters of the Health Department, for the eight-day and the ‘cease work’ for the 36th day seeking justice for the doctor who was raped and murdered at RG Kar Hospital and removal of Kolkata Police Commissioner and senior state health officials.
Saturday, Banerjee made a surprise visit to the protest site and assured the doctors that their demands would be addressed.
However, the proposed meeting fell through when the protesters claimed they were asked to leave “unceremoniously” after waiting for three hours at the gates of the CM’s residence.
PTI