Junior doctors at five medical colleges in Jharkhand went on an indefinite strike on Friday to protest against the alleged rape and murder of a woman medico and vandalism at a health facility in Calcutta, officials said.

The doctors boycotted the outpatient department (OPD) and elective operation theatre (OT) services but they excluded emergency services from the purview of their protest.

Jharkhand Junior Doctors Network (JDN) President Vikash Kumar said senior residents and junior medicos of five medical colleges in Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Hazaribag, Palamu and Dumka went on strike from Friday morning.

JDN vice-president Dr Jaideep said doctors did not want to go on strike as patients suffer from a ceasework at a hospital.

“After the Kolkata incident, medicos are feeling unsafe. Only a central law to ensure the safety and security of doctors at the workplace can restore confidence among the medicos,” he said.

Doctors at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Ranchi continued ceasework to protest against the alleged rape and murder of the woman medic in Kolkata.

Meanwhile, the Jharkhand wing of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has decided to join the 24-hour strike called by its national unit.

IMA state secretary Dr Pradeep Kumar Singh said the health services would be affected from 6 am on Saturday to 6 am on Sunday.

“We seek justice for Kolkata trainee doctor. Vandalism carried out at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital and attack on agitating medicos has compelled IMA to stand in their support,” he said.

A postgraduate trainee doctor was allegedly raped and murdered while on duty at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9.

A civic volunteer has been arrested in connection with the crime the next day.

A group of around 40 people entered the hospital and vandalised the emergency department, nursing unit and medicine store in the early hours of Thursday.

The mob also damaged CCTV cameras at the state-run health facility and ransacked a stage where junior doctors had been demonstrating against the alleged rape and murder of the woman postgraduate trainee there and demanding security at their workplace.

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