Medicos defiant, step up agitation

As the medicos scaled up their anti-reservation agitation, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said the matter was settled with the ruling UPA deciding in favour of 27 per cent quota for the OBCs in higher educational institutions.

President A P J Abdul Kalam and the PM once again appealed to the striking doctors and students to call off their agitation, assuring them that interests of all sections of the society would be protected.

However, the students said the remarks of the PM clearly showed that the government was going ahead with its proposal of introducing 27 per cent quotas for the OBCs.

"I am pained to see the agonising experience the youth of the country are undergoing. They should call off their strike and I assure that the government will find a viable and credible way to protect the interest of all sections of the society," Singh said, adding "I think the matter is already settled."

It was time for the process to gain momentum, he added.

"I am not averse to meeting any group of our citizens, if they want to talk to me," he said, adding, "We have lot of time to discuss any practical problem that may arise."

Kalam told a students' delegation, which called on him today, that he would ensure that the government implemented its decision to increase the general category seats.

Reacting to the PM's statement, Amitasha Sinha, a representative of Youth for Equality, which is spearheading the medicos' strike, said the government's statements indicated that the issue was closed. She, however, said the agitating students hoped that the government would make some moves to assuage their feelings and look into their demands.

Sinha said the students had called a rally at Ramlila Grounds on Saturday when the course of action would be decided.

The medicos, under the banner of Youth for Equality, called on the president later in the day to convey their position on the emotive issue and their decision to continue with the strike.

"We really thank the president for his concern but it has come a bit too late as the government has already announced its decision to go ahead with the proposal," said Sinha.

The agitation by resident doctors and medical students also got a boost as traders in the capital decided to join their movement and threatened to shut shops if the government failed to roll back its quota proposals within 100 hours.

The medicos have launched a 'civil disobedience' campaign to enlist the support of resident welfare associations, traders and other sections of the society in their movement against introduction of 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in elite educational institutions.

"This is an attempt to widen our agitation. We are seeking the support of the all sections of the society," Safal, a student from MAMC and a representative of Youth for Equality, said here.