Nurses of Thane Civil Hospital protested condemning the assault on a doctor at KDMC’s Shastri Nagar Hospital in Dombivli and demanding enhanced security measures for healthcare workers, in Thane, Maharashtra. File
| Photo Credit: PTI
Following the violent assault on doctors, nurses, and healthcare workers at Shastrinagar Municipal Hospital, Dombivli, Indian Medical Association (IMA) Maharashtra has announced a 24-hour statewide suspension of routine medical services on July 20, 2026.
The IMA has urged government to take strict action against all those involved in the assault, without any political interference and to amend the Maharashtra Medicare Act to prevent violence against healthcare workers.
“The involvement of persons holding political office in such brutal attacks undermines democratic values, the rule of law, and public confidence in the justice system. The Government must ensure that there is no political interference in this case and deliver prompt justice to the victims through fair and stringent action against the culprits,” said the IMA representative Santosh Kulkarni.
IMA also raised that the provisions of the act should include mandatory registration of FIRs, making serious assaults and offences involving the use of weapons cognizable and non-bailable, completion of investigations within 30–60 days, disposal of cases through fast-track courts, and effective provisions for compensation and recovery of damages.
The doctors protest comes in the wake of an attack on a doctor, where Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) corporator, Ramesh Mhatre, and several supporters allegedly assaulted doctors, nurses and other hospital staff at the Kalyan- Dombivli Municipal Corporation- run Shastrinagar Hospital. The corporator allegedly charged at a doctor over the unavailability of bed in hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit for a newborn.
The medical services will be closed from 6:00 a.m. on 20 July to 6:00 a.m. on 21 July. The routine OPD services and elective procedures will remain suspended. However, emergency services, ICUs, maternity services, and all life-saving treatments will continue as usual.
The other demands include, round-the-clock security arrangements in all government and private hospitals, strict implementation of a Zero Tolerance Against Healthcare Violence policy, a comprehensive Central law to protect healthcare workers across the country, and increased investment to strengthen public healthcare infrastructure.
Published – July 18, 2026 09:12 am IST
