Friday, August 25, 2006
Reservations, Arjun Singh and the Love Goddess
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Quota Bill tabled; medicos call off street protest
NEW DELHI: The quota Bill was tabled in Parliament, was referred to a Standing Committee and junior doctors and other students in the Capital called off their street protest. All by Friday afternoon.
Student leaders said they had feared an immediate passing of the Bill in Parliament and claimed that their protests had made the government put off pushing it immediately. The Bill is now expected to be taken up in the winter session of Parliament after the Standing Committee has worked out the finer details of implementation.
The Bill provides for 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in Central educational institutions. It is to be made operational from the academic year 2007 and makes no mention of the creamy layer. The Bill was cleared by the Union Cabinet this week.
As the monsoon session of Parliament came to a close, matters cooled down and a huge crowd of demonstrators at Jantar Mantar dispersed. The medicos and students said they were also weighing the option of taking the legal route now to stall the Centre’s reservation move.
Earlier, as the Bill was tabled by HRD minister Arjun Singh in the Lok Sabha, resident doctors from five prestigious hospitals in the Capital were joined by students from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, Jawaharlal Nehru University and others at Jantar Mantar, shouting slogans against the government, in particular, against the minister. Shouts of Vande Mataram rent the air and the protesters promised a real-life Rang de Basanti ”.
The air was young, electric, angry. Long stretches from Jantar Mantar were cordoned off and the place milled with policemen. Water cannons lay in wait, as they had done on Thursday. So did an ambulance.
Late on Thursday night, junior doctors that had courted arrest, were finally released in the Capital. Resident doctors in Delhi had threatened a shutdown of medical services if their compatriots were not released. Earlier in the day, the police had sprayed protesters outside the Supreme Court with water cannons and shelled them with tear gas. Several medicos and students had courted arrest.
Student leaders said they had feared an immediate passing of the Bill in Parliament and claimed that their protests had made the government put off pushing it immediately. The Bill is now expected to be taken up in the winter session of Parliament after the Standing Committee has worked out the finer details of implementation.
The Bill provides for 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in Central educational institutions. It is to be made operational from the academic year 2007 and makes no mention of the creamy layer. The Bill was cleared by the Union Cabinet this week.
As the monsoon session of Parliament came to a close, matters cooled down and a huge crowd of demonstrators at Jantar Mantar dispersed. The medicos and students said they were also weighing the option of taking the legal route now to stall the Centre’s reservation move.
Earlier, as the Bill was tabled by HRD minister Arjun Singh in the Lok Sabha, resident doctors from five prestigious hospitals in the Capital were joined by students from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, Jawaharlal Nehru University and others at Jantar Mantar, shouting slogans against the government, in particular, against the minister. Shouts of Vande Mataram rent the air and the protesters promised a real-life Rang de Basanti ”.
The air was young, electric, angry. Long stretches from Jantar Mantar were cordoned off and the place milled with policemen. Water cannons lay in wait, as they had done on Thursday. So did an ambulance.
Late on Thursday night, junior doctors that had courted arrest, were finally released in the Capital. Resident doctors in Delhi had threatened a shutdown of medical services if their compatriots were not released. Earlier in the day, the police had sprayed protesters outside the Supreme Court with water cannons and shelled them with tear gas. Several medicos and students had courted arrest.
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Mandal II: Protesting doctors, police clash at SC
NEW DELHI: Five junior doctors, including two women, were injured when police sprayed anti-quota protesters with water cannons and shelled them with tear gas outside the Supreme Court on Thursday. Resolute Resident Doctors said it only firmed their resolve.
The doctors have joined other students to protest against the Centre's decision to introduce reservation in government-aided educational institutions needs to be taken to another level. On Wednesday they observed a black day and on Thursday about 850 junior doctors have gone on mass casual leave.
The run-in with the police happened when doctors broke a police barricade and the police, ready for trouble, began to use water cannons. The police had two water tankers on the ready.
The doctors have joined other students to protest against the Centre's decision to introduce reservation in government-aided educational institutions needs to be taken to another level. On Wednesday they observed a black day and on Thursday about 850 junior doctors have gone on mass casual leave.
The run-in with the police happened when doctors broke a police barricade and the police, ready for trouble, began to use water cannons. The police had two water tankers on the ready.
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
AIIMS doctors on mass casual leave today
NEW DELHI: Thursday is going to be a not-so-pleasant deja vu for patients at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
More than 700 resident doctors from AIIMS and Maulana Azad Medical College are expected to go on mass casual leave in protest against the OBC reservation Bill.
Under graduates of AIIMS, Maulana Azad Medical College and UCMS will also go on a 24-hour strike. The situation will be reviewed after a day and the future course of action decided accordingly.
Authorities at AIIMS have decided to stop OPD registration at 10 am on Thursday instead of the usual 11 am to cope with the mass absenteeism.
The official stand is that emergency and in-patient services will not suffer but with just about 500 faculty members and 300-odd residents expected to be on duty that would be a tough task, admit insiders. On an average day, the patient turnout at AIIMS is about 7,600.
AIIMS spokesperson Dr Shakti Gupta said: "We have a contingency plan ready, one of which is to curtail OPD timings because one doctor can only see about 40-50 patients in a day and once a patient is registered he/she has to be attended to. Anyway not all residents will go on leave, the available work force will be pressed into service and things are expected to be normal."
Resident doctors at the institute sported black ribbons on Wednesday as a mark of protest. Said Dr Vinod Patra, president of the Resident Doctors’ Association: "We are appreciative of some of the measures adopted by the government like the staggered implementation and preservation of the number of general category seats. But what was the hurry of placing the Bill for Cabinet approval when it was already sub judice in the Supreme Court? We are still hoping that the Bill will be withdrawn in view of overwhelming public opinion against it."
More than 700 resident doctors from AIIMS and Maulana Azad Medical College are expected to go on mass casual leave in protest against the OBC reservation Bill.
Under graduates of AIIMS, Maulana Azad Medical College and UCMS will also go on a 24-hour strike. The situation will be reviewed after a day and the future course of action decided accordingly.
Authorities at AIIMS have decided to stop OPD registration at 10 am on Thursday instead of the usual 11 am to cope with the mass absenteeism.
The official stand is that emergency and in-patient services will not suffer but with just about 500 faculty members and 300-odd residents expected to be on duty that would be a tough task, admit insiders. On an average day, the patient turnout at AIIMS is about 7,600.
AIIMS spokesperson Dr Shakti Gupta said: "We have a contingency plan ready, one of which is to curtail OPD timings because one doctor can only see about 40-50 patients in a day and once a patient is registered he/she has to be attended to. Anyway not all residents will go on leave, the available work force will be pressed into service and things are expected to be normal."
Resident doctors at the institute sported black ribbons on Wednesday as a mark of protest. Said Dr Vinod Patra, president of the Resident Doctors’ Association: "We are appreciative of some of the measures adopted by the government like the staggered implementation and preservation of the number of general category seats. But what was the hurry of placing the Bill for Cabinet approval when it was already sub judice in the Supreme Court? We are still hoping that the Bill will be withdrawn in view of overwhelming public opinion against it."
