Gujarat medical students continue protests against quota policy

Ahmedabad, May 17 (UNI) Over 250 resident doctors from five civic hospitals in the city here today started their 48-hour ''token strike'' to protest the proposed reservation policy.

The junior doctors belong to the Vadilal Sarabhai Hospital, L G Hospital, Shardaben Hospital, Civil Hospital and Nagari Eye Hospital.

Medical students organised ''silent rallies'' and awareness campaigns in the campuses of all the five colleges and public places. The students and junior doctors from B J Medical College have set up a cell ''Youth for Quality'', which would decide the future course of action.

However, two junior doctors have been assigned to attend to emergencies in each shift in these colleges.

Medical students in Surat and Vadodara also held similar agitational programmes. Medical students from Surat Municipal Institute of Medical Education and Research (SMIMER) and Government Medical College (GMC) held demonstrations in Surat.

Around 200 students from both the medical colleges gathered at the busy Mini Bazar area of the city and addressed the public and distributed pamphlets. They raised slogans against Union Human Resources Minister Arjun Singh.

Rajiv Kharwar, a student leader from Surat GMC told UNI that the junior doctors will join their agitation from tomorrow. However, Kalpanaben Desai, medical superintendent at SMIMER, said she had not received any intimation in this regard.

Authorities at both GMC and SMIMER claimed that the functioning of the hospitals had not been affected.

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