The cease-work by junior doctors at government medical colleges continued on Thursday and so did the harassment of patients.

Across medical colleges in the city, many patients were refused admission and many others who arrived for tests were turned away. Doctors refused to admit patients even though "admission may be done" was written in their OPD tickets.

Health department officials said senior doctors are attending to patients in the OPD clinics, emergency department and indoor wards.

But a visit to three government medical colleges in the city between Wednesday and Thursday revealed that even serious patients were not being admitted.

Mohammed Amir, 40, who is suffering from brain cancer and has been unable to move his arms and legs for two days, was taken to the NRS Medical College and Hospital on Thursday by his wife Shabana Khatun.

"My husband and I reached the neuro-surgery OPD by 7am. Around 3pm, doctors said they couldn't admit him. A senior doctor told me they did not want to die by admitting such a patient," said Shabana.

"I asked him whether he wanted my husband to die, instead. The doctor didn't reply."

Amir's ticket at the neuro-surgery OPD said "admission may be done".

Shabana said she did not have money to treat her husband — a rickshaw van-puller — at a private hospital. The couple have two daughters.

At Medical College Kolkata, the emergency department wore an almost deserted look on Thursday afternoon. At a distance, junior doctors held shows, including skits, as part of their protest against the rape and murder at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

Near the principal's office, Laxmi Devi, in her late 50s, walked down pushing a wheelchair on which husband Prayag Chand Teri was seated holding a walking stick.

Doctors at the School of Tropical Medicine (STM), where Prayag visited earlier in the day, asked him to undergo several pathological tests. Late in the afternoon, Laxmi Devi said a chest scan could not be done because the staff at Medical College said their duty was over for the day.

"We spent over ₹50,000 at a private hospital for almost 11 tests. Doctors at the private hospital said my treatment would be very expensive. They referred me to the STM. Now I don't know what to do," Prayag, a Taratala resident, said.

At SSKM, many patients were denied admission on Wednesday. A few who had turned up with critical patients were lucky to see them getting admitted to ICUs.

Ketabur Rahaman, from Shibrampur village in Namkhana block of South 24-Parganas, had turned up with Abdul Kadir, his 67-year-old father, who needed admission.

Kadir, he said, had developed a neurological problem that left him unable to move the left side of his body. Doctors had initially said he would be admitted but later denied him admission, Ketabur said.

"Initially, we had got my father admitted to a nursing home at Shibrampur village. Doctors said the treatment would be costly and advised us to try and get my father admitted to SSKM," Ketabur said on Wednesday.

Officials in the health department said patients were being admitted at all government medical colleges. But when junior doctors stay away from duty, managing admissions becomes difficult, they admitted.

"When junior doctors remain unavailable at all government medical colleges, hospital admissions suffer because doctors can't refer them to any other medical college,” said a senior official. "We hope the junior doctors will return to work at the earliest."