Kolkata (PTI): The fast-unto-death by agitating junior doctors in West Bengal entered its 14th day on Friday over demands for justice for the deceased post-graduate trainee of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital and workplace security.

So far, six fasting junior doctors have been hospitalised after deterioration in their health condition, a protesting doctor said.

Currently, eight medics are on an indefinite fast at the protest site in Esplanade, located in the heart of Kolkata, he added.

The protesting doctors are demanding justice for the deceased woman medic and immediate removal of state Health secretary NS Nigam.

The protesting doctors said the government has not taken any concrete steps to address their 10-point charter.

In addition to justice for the medic who was raped and murdered, their other demands include the establishment of a centralised referral system for all hospitals and medical colleges in the state, the implementation of a bed vacancy monitoring system, and formation of task forces to ensure essential provisions such as CCTV, on-call rooms, and washrooms at their workplaces.

They are also demanding increased police protection in hospitals, recruitment of permanent women police personnel, and swift filling of vacant positions for doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers.

The junior doctors went on a 'cease-work' following the alleged rape-murder of a fellow medic at RG Kar hospital on August 9. They ended their stir after 42 days on September 21 following assurances from the state government to look into their demands.

 

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Washington (PTI): US President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened Iran with more bombing if it doesn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz, amid a report that the warring sides were nearing an agreement to end the war.

US media outlet Axios reported, quoting US officials and two other sources, that the US and Iran were getting close to a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war and set a framework for more detailed nuclear negotiations.

The US expects Iranian responses on several key points over the next 48 hours, Axios reported, adding that nothing has been agreed yet. This was the closest the parties had been to an agreement since the war began.

"Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is, perhaps, a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end, and the highly effective Blockade will allow the Hormuz Strait to be OPEN TO ALL, including Iran," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

"If they don’t agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before," Trump said.

According to Axios, the deal would involve Iran committing to a moratorium on nuclear enrichment, the US agreeing to lift its sanctions and release billions in frozen Iranian funds, and both sides lifting restrictions around transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

It said many of the terms laid out in the memo would be contingent on a final agreement being reached, leaving the possibility of renewed war or an extended limbo in which the hot war has stopped, but nothing is truly resolved.