Following the rape and murder of a colleague at one of West Bengal’s largest medical colleges in Kolkata, doctors have expressed serious concerns about the hospital’s security and working conditions.
Security Lapses
Doctors have pointed out several critical security deficiencies at RG Kar Medical College Hospital. Notably, they claim that the seminar room in the emergency building, where the doctor’s body was discovered, lacks CCTV coverage. Additionally, there are no CCTV cameras in the corridors or wards, with only the main gate monitored. According to Subhendu Mullick, a senior resident doctor at NRS Hospital who previously worked at RG Kar, most CCTV cameras are non-functional, and there is no quick response team in place. Hospital authorities have not responded to these concerns.
Inadequate Facilities
Junior doctors at RG Kar have highlighted the lack of proper rest areas for female doctors, forcing the victim to rest in a seminar room that also lacks a washroom. An intern shared that the hospital faces a high influx of trauma patients with insufficient doctor-to-patient ratios and inadequate support facilities. She also noted the absence of proper washrooms and changing rooms for staff.
Entry and Screening Issues
Concerns have also been raised about unauthorized entries into the hospital. One doctor criticized the lack of screening, noting that often multiple relatives accompany a single patient, and that strict entry regulations like those at Woodburn Ward of SSKM are not enforced. There is also no screening of outsiders entering the hospital at night, with reports of groups of people, including intoxicated individuals, entering the emergency section.
Touts and Security
Protesters allege that some contractual workers are involved in tout rackets, and that these individuals have access to various wards with little oversight. Dr. Nihal Saha suggested that there should be more police presence within the hospital. Although the hospital employs private security, junior doctors report that it is often absent after 9 pm. The lack of lighting in certain areas of the hospital poses additional safety risks for women staff members navigating the premises after dark.
Doctors are calling for the deployment of women police officers at key locations throughout the hospital to improve safety and address these issues.
