What follows below is a comprehensive look at the events of the 22nd of March 2009 and it’s possible outcomes. This website will be updated as and when new information comes in. Keep checking back for more.
The Incident
This Sunday, the 22nd of March, shall go down as a black day in the history of IIT, Kharagpur. It was with great sadness and considerable anger that the residents of the campus received news of the demise of one of its own; third year Electrical Engineering student, Rohit Kumar. A resident of the LLR Hall of Residence, Rohit had been visiting the hospital since Friday, the 20th of March, complaining of headaches. On Sunday, the headaches became increasingly painful and it was on his way back from the doctor that he fainted and fell from the rickshaw, resulting in major injuries. Following this, he was taken to BC Roy hospital by two students of LLR. The doctor on duty (who was present at the time when Rohit was taken to the hospital), Dr. N.K. Som, recommended that he be taken to Apollo Hospital, Kolkata and shown to a neurosurgeon. He stated that BC Roy did not have facilities to handle such cases and that it was best to take him to Kolkata as soon as possible. However, problems (such as filling of petrol) and the extensive paperwork involved in arranging an ambulance caused a delay of 2 hours during the course of which nothing much could be done.
He was finally sent on his way to Kolkata with 2 students for company and an untrained attendant. En route it was realized that though the oxygen mask had been placed over his mouth, the tank had still not been turned on. Soon after this, Rohit started coughing up blood. The students who accompanied him had the attendant call up Dr. Som and the students followed his instructions; pumping out blood without any help from the attendant. At the time, it was decided to take Rohit to the Spandan Hospital in Midnapore since his condition was deteriorating rapidly. In spite of asking the BC Roy officials to call ahead and inform Spandan of the impending arrival, there was no one there to receive them. By the time a doctor was found, Rohit had passed away and the hospital declared him dead on arrival. At present, his body lies in the mortuary at Midnapore medical college.
Questions and Answers
There are a lot of questions being asked and a lot of unfounded rumours flying around. Some of these questions can be answered and some of the rumours quashed. One of the major questions being asked is about the absence of a trained medico in the ambulance. The rules of BC Roy stipulate that no doctor can accompany a person in the ambulance. Unbelievable but a possible reason for this is that since there is only one doctor on duty, such action would mean that the hospital is left unmanned.
Another confirmed fact is that the doctor was present when Rohit was taken to the hospital. All delays were entirely due to the unavailability of an ambulance. The problems with the ambulances were apparent a week earlier when Mithun Madhusudhan, a 4th year student had to be taken to Kolkata for an operation after he fractured both his hands. At that time, the ambulance broke down and could move only in reverse gear. This is a very serious problem that hopefully will be corrected at the earliest.
The Reaction
An incident such as this, calls for the strongest possible reaction, and it was with this intent that the students on campus walked out of their hostels in protest. A crowd started forming with about 100-150 people gathered in front of the Director’s Bungalow demanding an audience and a strong reaction from the man in charge. Unfortunately, he delayed addressing the gathering, which had by then grown to nearly a 1000 people, all of whom were getting angrier and more restive by the minute. The Director’s subsequent equivocation about committees and ‘looking into the matter’ only made matters worse, as students understood these to be standard bureaucratic responses that were ineffective. Convinced that the authorities had still not correctly gauged the frustration and anguish of the students, they took matters to the next level. As tempers ran high and numbers swelled, an already dark day became uglier as the students resorted to destruction of property in a bid to demonstrate their anger. At all times, however, there was a strict student-enforced cordon around the officials, to pre-empt possibilities of physical assault. Such student conduct, while admittedly regrettable, seemed to be what caused the authorities to realize the gravity of the situation.
The Fallout
The raw emotion displayed by the students finally convinced the Director to step down after prolonged protests from the students. This came after nearly four hours of deliberation during which the students took to ransacking the director’s residence, smashing window panes and his car. Soon after at about 8 p.m., the Deputy Director convened an emergency meeting of all the Heads of Departments, Deans and student representatives to work out an immediate action plan to resolve the crisis. The points decided upon in the meeting are as follows:
- An independent commission composed of doctors from AIIMS/Apollo and other such medical institutions of repute must be setup to examine the current state of affairs and issue recommendations that must necessarily be followed.
- An external independent enquiry commission composed of civil servants (possibly members of the judiciary and IPS officers) must be setup in order to fix responsibility.
- B.C. Roy Hospital is to have better trained staff henceforth.
- The Institute will procure 5 new state of the art ambulances and these should be allowed to transport patients without waiting for the requisite paperwork to be completed.
- A database of all specialists in and around Kharagpur should be maintained and freely accessible.
- The Institute must pursue tie-ups with medical NGOs and nearby hospitals so that students can avail emergency medical care when needed.
- Deputation of central government doctors to Kharagpur must be looked into.
- The facilities must be upgraded so as to handle emergencies and at least 2 qualified emergency doctors must be present at all times (including weekends, off hours and night time).
- There must be greater transparency in the hospital’s operation. A review committee made of students, professors and one emeritus professor nominated by students, must be formed with the authority to review the progress at BC Roy every 15 days,
- Revision of pay scales for doctors in employ of BC Roy so as to attract better doctors.
- Adequate compensation for Rohit’s Family
The points put forward by the student representatives regarding the improvements in medical facilities at B.C. Roy Hospital were read out in an unprecedented jam-packed open session held at the Tagore Open Air Theater. Unfortunately, here too emotions were running high and the lack of discernible strong action and resolve on the part of the administration did nothing to help the situation. The situation spiraled rapidly out of control into one where the nearly 4,000 strong crowd demanded the resignation of the Dean of Student Affairs and the Chairman of the BC Roy Hospital, which turned out to be the Deputy Director. All this was in spite of the fact that the Deputy Director agreed to all suggested changes. In the end, the Dean of Student Affairs, in principle, resigned and the Deputy Director has also resigned from his post as the Chairman, B.C. Roy Hospital.
A meeting with student representatives from all halls of residence will be held on Monday morning at 10.00 a.m. to implement the proposed action plan. The deliberations and outcome of these committee meetings will be made public and available for everyone to view (on notice boards and on The Scholars’ Avenue). This committee will be meeting every 15 days in order to review progress and these progress reports shall also be made public. Such a move towards greater transparency is indeed heartening. Classes on Monday, the 23rd of March, have been cancelled in mourning as a mark of respect for Rohit. Monday shall also witness a candle light procession from the Gymkhana to the Main Gate at 6 p.m.
Implications
While many resignations were demanded and many tendered in the heat of the moment, the long term implications of the day will only become clear once the dust settles. The details of violence at the Director’s residence will eventually take precedence in this topic in the national media, taking focus off its cause – the complete absence of effective protocols and facilities at the B.C. Roy Hospital. This might have thus squandered an excellent opportunity to draw the attention of the national media and force the authorities at the highest level to implement concrete steps to make B.C. Roy a place to get better, not worse.
It was indeed heartening to see the entire student community come out in unison to protest the death of a fellow student. However, there is an urgent need to channelize this spirit in the right direction so as to achieve what it set out to do. We need a better hospital on campus, not mass resignations from officials and destruction of public property. We need positive action from the authorities, not negative action from the students. Rejoicing at the suspension of classes is downright despicable in a situation such as this. A serious question that must be asked is, “Have we become what we condemned the most; the stirs and protests that plague Bengal?”
The urgency of the problem is now amply clear to the authorities, and now it is time to work constructively with them to resolve the issue. Each one should play his part by informing the authorities of the improvements he has in mind through his respective hall representatives. It is imperative that any pictures or videos depicting violence or people engaged in such acts be suppressed. Negative publicity, especially in the national media, can only take us away from the goal of standardizing the systems for medical aid. Non-violent methods of protest are the need of the hour and it is best to refrain from mob behavior in the coming days. They will truly define how we KGPians, as a student community, respond to a crisis of such an unprecedented magnitude. Let us not forget that we are torchbearers of a premier institute of the country and that our duty to maintain the dignity of the institute is as important as our right to proper healthcare.
We, at The Scholars’ Avenue will continue to bring updates as the story unfolds. We urge all the faculty and alumni who are reading this to put pressure on the administration, via their own channels, to help improve medical facilities on campus. Let Rohit not have died in vain.
Disclaimer:
All information contained in the article above has been verified from people who were at the scene. This is the true version of events.
22 March 2009 embossed in pit black will go down the annals of history for many years to come. My deepest condolences to Rohit, his family and friends. May God give the departed soul peace and his family the courage and the strength to face such tough and appalling situation. It is very difficult to even difficult even to gauge and fathom the heavy feelings the family and his friends might be going through.
It is very sad that the untimely demise of Rohit Kumar had to cue the aftermath that marked the coup of the rather callous administration at helm. What is even disturbing was the stubborn and blunt statements and the stand on the whole taken by the institute. The attitude of the institute authorities has been bread over time and the complacency seems to be a daily state of affair for them. When the students gathered at the directors bungalow to register their grievances and demand the culpability of involved, the blunt and irresponsible smirk and statements of the directed only added fuel to the matter. Soon the resentment filled the water to the eyes and the crowd otherwise committed to refraining from extreme measure took the agitation to next level. In such time of extreme emotions and discontent the water often get murky and even the most committed and strong willed are not able to distinguish the right from the wrong. Although the vandalism of civil property cannot be justified but it definitely ensured the pressure for swift surrender of the Director.
During the chaos some students rose to the moment channelizing the emotions of the students while there were even isolated cases of malice and wanton. Some virtually broke into the bungalow and vandalized property and used the situation to their advantage. Such events only have undermined the righteousness the students stood for. But neglecting such bizarre events considering the entirety and the unison of the student community against the administration is what holds importance. The student community transcended the minor divisions and differences and showed a complete solidarity in thought and action. The surrender on the institute’s part bears a standing testimony for the same. Some students question the extreme means adopted and proponent a more moderate approach. But it was a retaliation the irresponsible comments had attracted.
When students first ‘gathered’ at Director’s bungalow he made his appearance from the balcony from a distance when he should have himself joined students to grieve the lost and assure the culpability, he chose to smirk and a took diplomatic stance. It was only then the bungalow was ‘gheraoed ’ and the matters worsened.
The fact that adamant attitude of DOSA did not buckle under such a stupendous gathering left many literally dumbstruck and showed the deep rootedness of his shallow feelings and behavior. It will be doubted where he considers students and humans as distinct dichotomy.
But in the hindsight the turn of events seem to reinforce on the coming administration not to take the student community for granted and carry the ounce on their part. The fixation of responsibility and conviction of the guilty will set a solid example. Also at least modernization of present hospital should follow if not a new facility in the entirety.
Let us hope that the faint sounds of change do not fade away in the clamor of bizarre events and the death of Rohit not go in vain.
I feel very sad for the family for the loss. I am not sure how they will be able to cop with it. God give them the strength.
It was always felt that BC Roy needed major uplift. Even in our times BC Roy was used more for getting medical leave, when you had bunked classes.
Luckily for me, when I got chicken pox in first and had to get admitted to BC Roy. I came out alive from there.
Hopefully they do something soon. I wonder what would have happened if one of the high authorities son met with such an accident.
It is sad to know that it took a student’s life for the authorities to finally realise the lacuna that has been created in a system. I remember in our time, The Scholar’s Avenue had been banned for about 6 months when they had posted something against BC Roy Hospital. I hope things will turn out to be better this time.. May the soul of Rohit rest in peace..
its a shame. right of expression has been killed.
we cant even have a candle vigil. It has clearly unearthed the true face of our administration, that is corrupt and solely based on power politics.
One human life, is this what they were waiting for???? I request the VP to consolidate all the reactions coming from alumni and other sources and put it in front of the authority. Please let us know what we can do to improve the situation. KGP has a strong alumni hold. So obviously we are in a position of taking some very firm actions. i request all of us to contribute to improve the pathetic condition of KGP.
The mass outrage is quite justified but hopefully the buck won’t stop with a few high profile resignations but something more constructive needs to come out of it to standardize the health care on campus to more contemporary levels than just being relegated to usual archaic standards after all this is over
Guys the problem here is corruption and lackadaisical attitude of the authorities.Be it health care facilities,mess food,cleanliness in the campus,hegemony with students,you can easily figure out the difference yourself.It may not be the right time to discuss this but other IIT’s have far better facilities than KGP.The administration here pay no heed to our problems because all they care about is increasing the head count because then they can ask (read swindle out ) more money from government coffers.
its so sad that things had to come to this for kgp to wake up eventually i only hope there are no more rohits in the future… i hope that the student representatives will be used to voice and deal with a few more genuine concerns of kgpians apart from just organizing fests and other activities…why not have gsecs for maintenance and mess and health care at the institute level…we care a lot for our sports and soc n cult competitions but maybe we lack a responsible student body to tackle these other areas of concern for us..as for this recent incident i dont think it would be practical to expect neurosurgeons at bc roy in the future but i think that the other hospitals of kgp/midnapore the govt hospital and the railway hospital are better equipped to handle critical cases where its not feasible to send someone on a torturous and life threatening 4 hr journey to calcutta–isnt there (and if not why) any kind of arrangement for fast transfer of critical cases to the more competent medical facilities of kgp/midnapore itself??…this incidence also shows the general lack of sympathy of the kgp administration for the students…very few of the staff can be said to be actually polite to students be it at the admin or bcr or where ever…wtf…a 20 yr old boy is dying at your door step and you get busy with all administrative procedures and formalities…thats disgusting i gss
This is really really sad…let us have a wing in BC Roy named after Rohit so we never ever forget this incident and let it serve as a reminder to what laxity on part of the admin brings….it is time the authorities took care of students.
Kimi
RP Hall 91
I am saddened by the news. It is very tragic to hear about a young life snuffed away like that.
Having said that, I must say that the reaction to the incident was way out of line.
The student had a head injury. Head injuries are very tricky especially if there is bleeding. You need excellent care in the shortest possible time to diagnose and remedy the problem. Such care is sometimes just not available no matter where you are.
Even in countries like the USA, head injuries end up with undesirable outcomes. Check out what happened to Natasha Richardson.
I understand it is an emotional subject and it warrants attention. The notion that corrective action will be implemented by the actions that would result in proper head injury care is absolutely ridiculous.
In conclusion, if you are in a place, where care is not available immediately for all problems, you cannot blame the place.
It is sometimes just pure hard luck when you are in a place with a problem that cannot be solved.
Mustafa
Responses forwarded from our blog (http://scholarsavenue.blogspot.com/)
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Anonymous:
its really bad,to send an untrained attendant.and its obviously required to maintain two ambulances in the hospital.
9:36 PM, March 23, 2009
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Anonymous:
i think this is the best representation of the facts tht occured yesterday…. and a copy of this shud be sent to the media… all channels and print… so tht misrepresentation of the facts can be stopped…. this holds a very neutral perspective and includes all said and done….
9:41 PM, March 23, 2009
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Anonymous:
i would want to request the schols av. to add 2 blogs here regarding
1. the actual facts relating to the deterioration of the health of Gaurav Tomar and his current status… and also how BCR was ineffective in his case
2. a testimonial to Rohit by some of his closest frnds so tht the entire insti can hav a better idea of him and also a way to remember him by… this i think shud not contain the details of his last day with us… and only the gud things…
9:52 PM, March 23, 2009
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The Scholars’ Avenue:
We will be publishing a eulogy shortly after his friends have recovered enough to tell us about him.
9:54 PM, March 23, 2009
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Anonymous:
Do we have the details of wat happnd with his parents today… i mean did they face any trouble claiming him or taking him back…
9:59 PM, March 23, 2009
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Anonymous:
As an alumnus of Kgp I am deeply concerned about this tragic incident.My heartfelt and sincere condolences to the parents of Rohit and the entire Kgp community.
‘Paper-work’ is a convenient excuse for lack of timely and pro-active ACTION.I still remember the period when I was hospitalised in my first year due to a fall from my bike while rushing to the PT ground. My room-mate took me on his bike to the hospital and immediately called our local guardian, Prof.Sinha (EE Deptt). (I hope this system of appointing ‘Tutors’ is still in force).It made all the difference in the approach of the hospital staff!
If ambulance break-down is unpardonable, lack of trained attendants to give Oxygen is criminal.
A careful and diligent audit of each one of the events leading to the sad death of Rohit
must be carried out to prevent such negligence in future.
10:34 PM, March 23, 2009
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Anonymous:
i feel very sorry about this incident..and i pray to god Rohit’s soul shall rest in peace..and I am motivated by the students union on this issue and taking the right for getting proper health care upon the death of Rohit bhaiyya who couldnt get enough facitiles at the right time… We, the students of country’s pride institutions shall act as we did now ,on all the social problems and bring the GLORY of our nation back..
10:50 PM, March 23, 2009
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Anonymous:
I am an almun of KGP(1998). BCRTH’s competency and management has been questionable since a long time. In 1995 too an M.Tech student had died in BCRTH in very similar manner as Rohit (I don’t remember the date but someone who was as IIT KGP at that time should be remembering). At that time too there was angry reactions and protest at Institute main gate (which the then director Dr. K. L. Chopra had addressed after several hours of demonstrations) was doused by the administrator using usual bureaucratic techniques.
We would not have lost another student today, had Dr. K.L.Chopra’s administration taken the corrective actions at that time.
While whatever happened is most unfortunate, the student community must show their true KGPian spirit and must try their best not to damage the image of our beloved alma-mater.
11:31 PM, March 23, 2009
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Padmaja Kota:
I can personally feel the loss the parents of Rohit might be feeling.
My brother is studying at iit kgp 4th year.
I dread the lack of medical facilities near a college where so many students stay.
Please its a humble request to all authorites to take all measures so that such an incident never happens again.
May god bless the soul of Rohit and also give strength to his family during this very sad time.
2:24 AM, March 24, 2009
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A Ghosh:
(Alumnus 75)
No loss could be greater than the loss of an young budding inspired youth. I am in my heart of hearts already a party to the feelings of Rohit’s family and friends. Students are the future. I strongly wish that I live to see that something conctrete happens at BC Roy Hospital.
1:23 PM, March 24, 2009
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K.K. Patodia:
(70 NHR ChE)
I am appalled at the tragedy which could have been averted.My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family.Hope the authorities do something quickly to improve conditions atBCRTH.
5:11 PM, March 24, 2009
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Alabhya Singh:
My heart goes out to the bereaved parents of Rohit Kumar.
Alabhya Singh, Patel Hall 1986-91.
7:07 PM, March 24, 2009
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Anonymous:
I am 1998 Alumunus. For a while I worked in KGP too. I was shocked to learn of 22/3 at IIT Kgp.While I understand the students ire and anger I am ashamed that KGPians have indulged in destruction of property. I recall the terrible ragging incident in 1991 , when students went on hunger strike and protested and made the administration bend. This does not befit an IItian, who is considered a class apart from the usual engineering college students.
It is unclear why the Director was singled out? He is just taken over a year ago? What about the Deputy Director as the Hospital Commitee Chairman all these years? What has he done to improve the system? Nothing. While the Director’s house was being ransacked and property destroyed , did any one of you think of the Director’s wife, her plight and state of shock.
Me and my fellow IItians here in Banaglore, are still not able to come to terms that KGpians can be violent.
7:34 PM, March 24, 2009
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Anonymous:
It is very very sad that so called Premier Institute of Technology is irresponsible towards the cream of nation. we can imagine the situation of real India, after so many years of Independence it can not give common minimum requirements for the people, we should be ashamed of ourselves. i feel very very sorry for what had happened and Rohit, i wish your soul rest in peace…
8:27 PM, March 24, 2009
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I am an alumni of 2008 batch and My deepest condolences to Rohit’s family and friends.I support what the student community has done unitedly.It is high time that the authorities know what are the basic problems faced by the students of KGP.last year too a student died during a NSS camp.that too happened just bcoz of lack of medical facilities and the condition is even worse when a ambulance gets stuck at the railway line infronta cheddis…..i remember a prof 4m ECE died in a incident where he was on his way to a hospital and the ambulance got stranded infront of the railway line and was not given a path….If we had a bridge this wouldn’t have happened….
seeing all these incidents..i say we alumni and students of kgp must take up some action and help kgp get a hospital where better facilities are there……….
Last year