RIMS staff lifts stir in Imphal

IMPHAL, Jan 24 — After five days of ceasework strike against the attack on the life of deputy superintendent of Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Dr P Bedikumar, the doctors and employees of the institute decided to resume normal service by opening the emergency service and morgue of the hospital from Wednesday. The Joint Action Committee (JAC) against shooting incident in RIMS hospital in a meeting held on Tuesday, also decided to suspend its ceasework strike agitation from January 25. The convenor of the JAC while talking to the newsmen, said that the decision to call off the ceasework strike was taken during a meeting taking into consideration the hardships faced by the general public. Appealing to check resurrence of such attack as the one on the RIMS deputy superintendent, the convenor said institutes like hospitals and Red Cross are kept protected even at the time of war according to international humanitarian norms. If such places are not protected, the staffs particularly the doctors and hospital staff members will not be able to discharge their duties properly, he said urging the authorities concerned to check such incidents. The members of the JAC also expressed regret that the general public was inconvenienced due to the ceasework strike. They also urged the general public to issue appeals to groups concerned to stop attacks on hospital staffs. The convenor of the JAC expressed discontentment that the Government denied knowledge of the incident even after it was informed on the same day. It may be noted here that the deputy superintendent of RIMS, Dr P Bedikumar, was shot on January 17 by members of the banned Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL-O). The outfit also claimed the responsibility for the shooting on January 20, saying that Dr Bedikumar failed to pay “txyes”, according to a statement of the outfit which was issued to the local press, the outfit charges Government employees, 1.5 per cent of their salaries. With regard to RIMS, it said that in 1999, after an agreement between the two sides, only 1 per cent of salaries was charged. Justifying the shooting, it said the amount demanded was very meagre and well within the means of the RIMS staff. The action had also been carried out after several warnings, it said. The statement of the KYKL (O) also stated that the party was prepared to take all necessary action to obtain its due “taxes”.