Chandigarh: Women doctors raised security concerns

Chandigarh: Resident doctors of PGI have raised security issues in the campus, especially those related to women. In a press conference held at the PGI campus, the association of resident doctors, especially female residents, said that a lot needs to be done to ensure proper safety of the residents. ARD members said that doctors have to walk or drive from one place to another in the campus late at night and the authorities should ensure proper lighting. “There are many places where one can feel unsafe at night as there is no proper lighting,” a female member said. Female residents have also demanded proper CCTV coverage in the campus.

Residents have said that changing rooms and rest areas designated for doctors, especially for women, should be accessed by limited members. A female resident also said that male cleaning staff has also been allowed to enter the changing areas for female residents, which should be stopped. Another resident doctor said, “Entry should be regulated for which the administration should take the help of technology and install electronic card-entry devices.” Prof Sanjeev said the faculty members were asking the authorities to take care of black spots where better lighting and CCTV coverage was needed.

“There are around 500 CCTV cameras installed on the campus and some of these are out of order. We have asked the concerned department to get these cameras repaired. We have also been told that around 500 new cameras will be installed on the campus,” he said.

Prof Neeraj Khurana, a senior faculty member at PGI, said, “The institute is large and apart from being a hospital, it is also a research centre. Many researchers leave at odd hours and their safety must be ensured.” Expressing concern over the fact that the security staff is not always well-equipped to deal with miscreants, the faculty members said they would request the Chandigarh police to provide assistance in ensuring proper security of the staff and patients.