Kolkata: Four days after the fire that left 93 dead, AMRI Hospital on Tuesday night decided to suspend medical treatment at its entire Dhakuria unit in south Kolkata citing "lack of congenial working atmosphere", hours after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee faced angry protests from hospital employees who shouted at her not to take away their jobs.
While the Annexe 1 building, ravaged by fire, had seen its licence cancelled by the authorities, the Annexe 2 building was also shut down after the tragedy. Only the main building was operational till Tuesday where some of the survivors of the blaze and other patients were being treated.
"Now there is not a single indoor patient. Some of the patients have been discharged, some sent to our Women and Child Care hospital at Mukundarpur (in the city's southern outskirts) and our hospital at Salt Lake. A few have been shifted to other hospitals,' said an AMRI source.
"Our management and staff feel the atmosphere is now not congenial for maintaining our service. So we have decided to suspend treatment for at least 2-3 days. During this period, no new patients will be admitted indoor or treated or tested in our outdoor department," the source said.
"However, the hospital office will remain open and our staff will attend," the source maintained.
The hospital's decision came at the end of a day of fast moving developments.
Banerjee paid a surprise visit to the facility during the day "looking for a missing patient" and instructed the hospital management not to admit new patients as "investigation is on".
However, she faced a sudden angry demonstration from a group of hospital staff who screamed at her that they were afraid of losing their jobs as the government has cancelled the licence of the Annexe 1 wing.
"You must treat the issue leniently. If the licence is cancelled we will lose our jobs. Let our Dahakuria unit function. What will happen to us now? Your government must get us jobs," some members of the staff shouted at the chief minister. They also handed over a memorandum containing the signatures of patients saying they wanted to be treated at the Dhakuria unit.
Initially caught off-guard, Banerjee shouted back saying: "What do you think of yourselves? What were you doing when people were dying? How could so many people be killed?"
"What did you do to save the people? So many people have died. Don't create hurdles in the way of justice. Allow us to ensure justice. Then you will also get justice."
Banerjee told the protestors that the hospital management has to own up responsibility.
Coming out of the building, she alleged that the hospital management had instigated the staff. "They (the management) have made them (the employees) say this."
"What can I do? So many people have died," she told media persons when they sought her reaction on the employees' resentment.
After the chief minister left, the employees vented their ire on the media and roughed up some reporters and electronic media camera persons.
After a short while, local lawmaker Sovandeb Chatterjee rushed to the area with his supporters and condemned the way the chief minister was heckled. "I have visited the wards. All the patients literally begged me to shift them from this hospital. We are bringing ambulances".
After some time, the indoor department became vacant.
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