Healthcare services across India have been severely impacted as doctors adhere to the Indian Medical Association's (IMA) call for a 24-hour strike, starting from 6 am on Saturday. This protest is in response to the gruesome rape-murder of a trainee doctor at a Kolkata hospital. During the strike, routine outpatient department (OPD) services and elective surgeries have been halted, but emergency services are continuing to operate.

The Health Ministry has urged the striking doctors to return to their duties in the public interest and has promised to establish a committee to address their concerns and enhance the safety of healthcare professionals. This committee will involve representatives from various stakeholders, including state governments.

The strike has seen widespread participation across the country. In Delhi, major hospitals such as Guru Teg Bahadur, Ram Manohar Lohia, DDU, and AIIMS have suspended OPD services. Jharkhand's government and private hospitals are also participating, with planned protests in Ranchi. In Assam, doctors are holding a sit-in at Assam Medical College and Hospital, while Chennai and West Bengal are seeing widespread disruptions in outpatient services. The IMA’s Chandigarh unit and Bengaluru’s medical community are also involved in protests, highlighting a unified demand for improved security measures, including a central law to prevent violence against medical staff and enhanced safety protocols at hospitals.