Mamata visits protest site, urges medics to resume work; will not compromise, say protestors
Kolkata (PTI): Amid the continuing impasse, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday made a surprise visit to the site where the junior doctors were protesting, and assured them that she would look into their demands and take action if anyone was found guilty.
Addressing the protesting doctors amid chants of 'we want justice' outside the Swasthya Bhawan in Salt Lake, Banerjee said she would not take any steps against them as she did not believe in suppressing a democratic movement. "Bengal is not Uttar Pradesh," she said.
However, after she left the site, the agitating doctors said they were not ready to compromise on their demands till discussions were held, indicating no immediate breakthrough in the impasse.
Accompanied by DGP Rajiv Kumar, Banerjee reached the site in Sector 5 around 1 pm, taking those present there by surprise.
She said she was spending sleepless nights as the medics were agitating on the road amid rains.
"I came to meet you as your 'didi' (elder sister) not as the chief minister," she said.
"I assure you that I will study your demands and take action if someone is found guilty," she added, urging the protesting doctors to return to work.
She also announced that patient welfare committees of all state-run hospitals were dissolved with immediate effect.
"This is my last attempt to resolve the crisis," Banerjee said.
The medics have been camping outside Swasthya Bhawan, the headquarters of the state Health Department, since Tuesday with a host of demands, including better security at state-run hospitals and the removal of top officials over the rape and murder of the doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.
The junior doctors have been protesting for over a month, affecting the public healthcare infrastructure of the state. The government claimed that 29 people have died due to the protests allegedly after not receiving treatment.
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Over 5.56 lakh FIRs registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita since July 1
New Delhi (PTI): Over 5.56 lakh First Information Reports (FIRs) have been registered across the country under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) ever since its introduction on July 1, a senior official said on Wednesday.
For smooth implementation of the new criminal laws, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has also developed several mobile applications, including e-Sakshya for capturing, storing and retrieving evidence through videography and photography.
The app has been adopted by 22 states and Union Territories and tested by 24 states and UTs.
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and the Bharatiya Sakshya Act replaced the colonial-era Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act of 1872 respectively.
Since July 1 till September 3, a total of 5.56 lakh FIRs have been registered in the country under the BNS, the officer said, highlighting the achievements of the home ministry in the first 100 days of the Modi 3.0 government.
Software patches have been designed and deployed in the Inter-operable Criminal Justice System (ICJS) pillar applications to incorporate the new criminal laws.
The key changes in the CCTNS (Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems) include e-Prisons, e-Forensics, e-Prosecution, use of audio-video electronic means and electronic communication among others as per the new criminal laws.
Application patches of CCTNS/ICJS (23 patches developed by the NCRB), e-Forensics (6 patches developed by the NIC), e-Prosecution (7 patches developed by NIC) and e-Prisons (9 patches developed by the NIC) for implementation new criminal laws shared with all the states and UTs, another official said.
A mobile and web application, NCRB SANKALAN of Criminal Laws, has been designed to help the users navigate the new criminal laws and till date has been downloaded approximately 5.85 lakh times.
The home ministry has set up a CCTNS technical support call centre with helpline number (14415) to assist the states and UTs.
Another app, Nyay Shruti, has been launched for efficient and secure communication between all pillars of ICJS ecosystem.
Testing has been done on e-Summons application which will facilitate the electronic delivery of summons and warrants from the courts to police stations, and subsequently to the concerned individuals which has been shared with all the states and UTs for their usage.
