RIMS blast strongly condemned, dharna staged
OPD, Casualty, OT to shut for 3 days
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, May 26: In protest against the last evening's bomb blast at RIMS, the functioning of the OPD, Casualty and Operation Theatre of the hospital has been suspended for three days with effect from today.

However, all indoor health care services and emergency operations shall not be affected during this period.

Meanwhile, Director of RIMS Prof L Fimate, while decrying the bomb attack which come at a time when efforts are being made by the Centre to develop RIMS as unfortunate, has urged all the social organisations in the State to raise their voice to ensure against such violence incidents do not recur.

Students and faculty of RIMS staging a dharna to protest the bomb attack at their institute

Condemning the incident, a joint meeting of the Head of Departments, president and secretaries of Teachers and Medical Officers' Associations, Junior Doctors' Association, Non-Teaching Employees' Welfare Association, Trained Nurses Association of India, RIMS Branch and RIMS Students' Union held at the conference hall of the medical institute in the morning today has decided to suspend the OPD and Casualty services for period of three days with effect from today.

All the indoor health care services and emergency operations, however, shall be continued unaffected and Casualty shall re-open on May 29 at 8 am.

The meeting also decided that all classes shall be cancelled during the period, however, the examinations shall remain unaffected.

Furthermore, the meeting decided to submit a memorandum to the RIMS authority to improve security chain and also to restrict vehicle entry for patient party inside the campus and issue an appeal to all underground organisations operating in Manipur to make RIMS a 'free zone' and to refrain from repeating such act of violence in future in the larger interest of patients, staff and students.

After the meeting, a relay protest demonstration led by the Director of the Institute has also begun from today.

Placards with slogans like 'Bomb attack in Hospital is an act of terrorism', 'Don't carry out terrorist activities inside Hospital area' 'We condemn bomb blast inside RIMS compound' etc were seen being put at the site of the protest demonstration.

Talking to The Sangai Express in connection with the bomb attack, Director of RIMS Prof L Fimate said that the bomb attack which come at a time when the Centre has been paying serious attention for development of RIMS was very unfortunate as it may give out wrong signal.

So, all the social organisations in the State should raise their voice so that no such violent incident do not recur in the future.

Pointing out that even in times of war, hospitals are spared, the Director urged all concerned to refrain from attacking RIMS.