New Delhi:
The Indian Medical Association will hold a protest on June 18 against the assault on doctors, with the slogan of 'save the saviors'.
In a statement, the apex medical body asked all its state and local branches across the country to observe the protest by wearing black badges, masks, ribbons, shirts and running an awareness campaign against violence targeting healthcare professionals.
The IMA said press conferences will also be organized and they will also meet local NGOs and voluntary service leaders. It has termed ''extremely disturbing'' a series of violence against doctors in the last two weeks in Assam, Bihar, West Bengal, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, and other places.
It demanded the implementation of the central hospital and Health Care Professionals Protection Act with IPC and Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), standardization and augmentation of security in each hospital, and declaring hospitals as protected zones among others.
''Action Committee of IMA, after considering all the aspects and to express our concern, anger, and solidarity, has decided to observe the 18th June 2021 as IMA National Protest Day with demand to stop the assault on the profession and the professionals with the slogan 'Save the Saviors','' the medical body said.
It further said that June 15 will be observed as a National Demand Day and Press Meets will be held across the country by branches. On yoga guru, Ramdev's alleged recent disparaging remarks against allopathy, the IMA said the legal course is underway and it will be followed up. '
'Ramdev has now publicly issued the new statement saying that 'DOCTORS ARE DEVDOOTS' and he will personally also go for vaccination. But the mental agony/verbal violence inflicted on us is unforgettable,'' it said.
Meanehile, the said that 719 doctors have lost their lives due to coronavirus in the second wave of the COVID pandemic with Bihar recording the maximum fatalities.
According to IMA, Bihar recorded 111 deaths, Delhi–109, Uttar Pradesh–79, West Bengal–63, and Rajasthan–43.
Among the southern states, Andhra Pradesh reported 35 deaths, while 36 doctors succumbed to the virus in Telangana. Tamil Nadu recorded 32 deaths, while Karnataka and Kerala reported 9 and 24 deaths, respectively.