Doctor murder: Junior doctors continue ceasework, give Wednesday deadline to police to finish probe
Kolkata (PTI): Junior doctors across West Bengal continued ceasework on Tuesday protesting the rape and murder of a woman doctor at a state-run medical college and hospital in Kolkata and demanding justice for her.
The stir affected healthcare services as long queues of patients were seen at out-patient departments (OPDs) of all government hospitals since early Tuesday morning as senior doctors were substituting their junior counterparts to address the rush.
The agitating junior doctors, who have been pressing for magisterial probe into the killing of the woman doctor, on Tuesday set a deadline of August 14 for the Kolkata Police to complete their investigation.
"The ceasework and protest will continue till our demands are met. We have been very clear about our demands. We want a judicial probe into the incident," a protesting junior doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital said.
"Why do they need a deadline till Sunday? We are asking the police to complete their investigation by Wednesday," he added.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, after paying a visit to the parents of the deceased on Monday, gave a deadline of August 18 to Kolkata Police to solve the case, failing which she said she would hand over the matter to the CBI.
The body of a woman doctor was found in a seminar hall at the hospital on Friday morning, and a civic volunteer was arrested on Saturday in connection with the crime.
Till Sunday, junior doctors had attended to emergency duties, but from Monday morning, they ceased all work.
The state government has cancelled the leaves of all senior doctors to handle the influx of patients, mostly in the OPDs.
Talking about managing the rush of patients, an official of state-run SSKM Hospital said that since most of the senior doctors were present on Monday, the pressure could be well tackled.
However, some patients, scheduled to get admitted at different hospitals for surgeries, had to return home after they were given an alternate date by the authorities.
Saiful Alam, a resident of Murshidabad district, reached Kolkata on Sunday evening to get admitted at Shambhunath Pandit Hospital early on Monday.
"I had come to Kolkata on Sunday evening and spent the entire night on the hospital premises. But the next morning, I was given another date for admission," Alam claimed.
Similar scenario was witnessed in other hospitals as patients coming to visit doctors at the OPD or getting admitted for scheduled surgeries were sent back home after rescheduling of their appointments.
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Commercial LPG hike: Delhi restaurant owners warn of higher menu rates, job losses
New Delhi (PTI) A day after a 50 per cent rise in commercial LPG cylinder prices, Delhi's food business, with restaurant owners and street vendors have warned of higher menu rates, financial strain and potential job losses if the trend persists.
The price of commercial LPG was hiked by a steep Rs 993 per 19 kg cylinder, marking the third consecutive monthly hike amid rising global energy prices linked to the West Asia conflict.
For many in the restaurant industry, the spike has been both sudden and steep.
Manpreet Singh, honorary treasurer of the National Restaurant Association of India, said that eateries are already grappling with supply challenges alongside rising costs.
"There is a huge difficulty in getting these cylinders, and black marketing is also increasing in many unregulated sectors," he said, noting that prices that were once around Rs 1,600, often dropping to nearly Rs 1,300 with discounts, have now surged to between Rs 3,000 and Rs 4,000 per cylinder.
He further added that a medium-sized restaurant typically uses between two and five cylinders daily, making the increase particularly burdensome as costs mount.
Singh further said that as costs mount, smaller establishments could struggle to stay afloat. Instead, the association has advised restaurants to shift towards piped natural gas connections through Indraprastha Gas Limited as a more sustainable alternative.
"If this problem continues, PNG is the only long-term solution," he said, adding that temporary measures like coal offer limited relief due to slower cooking times and that it can largely be used only for tandoors.
Echoing similar concerns, Kabir Suri, owner of Mamagoto in Khan Market, said the impact is already visible across the industry. "There has been almost a threefold increase in cylinder prices for restaurants," he said, adding that rising fuel and logistics costs are compounding the pressure.
"If this continues, it will become a significant financial burden, and food prices will inevitably go up. Adding to this burden, higher fuel costs are also affecting logistics and transportation, making a price rise unavoidable. The extent of the impact will vary between small eateries and large chains depending on their scale," he said.
Global oil prices have surged nearly 50 per cent following disruptions in energy supply chains due to the West Asia conflict, pushing up commercial fuel costs and transport expenses.
A West Delhi-based restaurateur said they are trying to manage rising costs while keeping their staff secure. "We are trying to ensure that our staff, from kitchen workers to waiters, are paid on time and do not face immediate hardship," the owner said.
"We are a small restaurant with seating for about 20 to 25 people at a time. But if this continues for long, we will have to take difficult calls. There is only so much we can absorb, and menu prices will have to go up. We hope this does not continue for a longer period," he said.
Another restaurant owner in North Delhi, who did not wish to be named, said operational adjustments alone may not be enough. "We are checking our costs very carefully and trying to cut wherever possible, but if fuel prices remain high, it will eventually affect how we run the business," the owner said.
"Coal helps in tandoor cooking, but it takes more time," the owner further added.
The strain is even more acute among street vendors, many of whom operate on thin margins. A vendor in Saket said he had recently expanded his business, moving from a mobile cart to a rented outlet.
"I have a family to feed and more responsibilities now. Earlier, I managed with a moving cart, but after renting the place, expenses increased," he said. "Whenever cylinders were unavailable, I had to buy them at higher rates in the black market. Now even regular supply is too expensive, and if this continues, we may have to shut down," he added.
In Laxmi Nagar, another vendor said they are struggling to keep the business running. "Sometimes we even used domestic cylinders from home when supply ran out because we had to keep the stall running," he said, adding that rising costs leave little choice but to increase prices or bear losses.
On April 1, the rates of commercial LPG cylinders were hiked by Rs 195.50 per cylinder, followed by a Rs 114.5 hike on March 1, taking the total increase over the past three months to Rs 1,303. With the latest revision, a 19 kg commercial LPG cylinder now costs Rs 3,371.5 in Delhi, up from Rs 2,078.5 earlier.
The prices of domestic LPG cylinders used for household cooking have remained unchanged. They were last increased by Rs 60 per 14.2 kg cylinder on March 7 and currently cost Rs 913 in Delhi.
