Health workers in India launched a 24-hour nationwide strike on Saturday to protest the rape and murder of a doctor in the city of Calcutta.
The strike, which began at 6 a.m. local time, will cut off access to elective medical procedures and outpatient consultations in the world's most populous country, according to a statement by the Indian Medical Association.
Emergency departments of hospitals will continue to be staffed.
Last week, a 31-year-old trainee doctor was raped and murdered at a medical school where she worked, triggering nationwide protests among doctors.
Protests by doctors and women's groups have been triggered by anger at the failure of tough laws to deter a rising tide of violence against women.
WHAT HAPPENED?
Last week, a trainee doctor was killed after being sexually assaulted while sleeping in a seminar room at a government hospital in West Bengal state because there was no rest area after a 36-hour shift.
The incident sparked nationwide protests among doctors and brought to mind the 2012 gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student on a moving bus in New Delhi.
