West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday directed officials to ensure the safety and security of patients, visitors and doctors in all medical establishments across the state following incidents of alleged molestation of a minor and a medic at state-run hospitals in Kolkata and Uluberia, a top official said.
Banerjee, who addressed a high-level meeting over the phone, directed officials to take all possible measures to prevent any recurrence of such incidents, he said.
"She emphasised that harassment of anyone coming for treatment will not be tolerated under any circumstances. She also directed the administration to adopt a zero-tolerance approach towards such offences," the bureaucrat told PTI.
Banerjee, who is also the state health minister, directed the department to review the existing security arrangements in the hospitals and to strengthen them wherever necessary.
"This includes measures such as enhanced training for security personnel, installation and monitoring of CCTV cameras, and other infrastructural and administrative steps aimed at ensuring patient safety," he said.
The high-level meeting convened by Chief Secretary Manoj Pant, was attended by senior officials of the state health department, including DGP Rajeev Kumar, health secretary NS Nigam and others.
"The officials present at the meeting were asked to submit an action plan at the earliest to implement the directives," the official said.
A teenage girl was allegedly molested by a former group D staffer of a government hospital in the state-run SSKM Hospital here on Wednesday night.
The accused was arrested from Dhapa on Wednesday night and booked under the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
In Howrah district's Uluberia, a junior woman doctor at the Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay Medical College and Hospital was allegedly molested and threatened with gangrape by relatives of patients. Later, police arrested three persons for their alleged involvement in the matter.
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