End war and resume dialogue immediately: IDPD

Ludhiana, March 3, 2022: In a protest demonstration held here at Ludhiana today the Indian Doctors for Peace and Development (IDPD) reiterated that the war must end immediately, the military operation by the Russians should cease and dialogue be resumed between Russia and Ukraine. Any escalation could lead to use of the nuclear weapons, which would be catastrophic. For lasting peace it is all the more important that USA and NATO should stop meddling in others affairs. NATO should be dismantled. The nuclear weapons should be abolished immediately from the earth and all the nuclear weapon possessing countries should join the UN Treaty Prohibiting Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). The UNO should play an effective role in this process.     
    
The speakers expressed deep grief at the death of Indian student Naveen Shekharappa in Ukraine in the shelling by Russian army.  Still thousands of students are stranded in Ukraine who need to be evacuated immediately. The demonstration was held from Near Bharat Nagar Chowk to Mini Secretariat in which various speakers expressed anguish at that Indian government delayed the evacuation process which is leading to this situation. India has the experience of evacuating 1.7 lakh Indians from gulf during the gulf war. But this exercise requires seriousness and determination. It is unfortunate that instead of taking the evacuation process seriously our Ministers are busy in public relation exercises and show off through the media. Even the Prime Minister is patting his own back for an exercise not even half done properly. Our foreign minister should go to Russia in the spirit of non-aligned movement and appeal to the Russian government to help in evacuation of Indians stranded in Ukraine.   
The events have also exposed the government’s policy of privatisation of medical education which is exorbitantly high priced in India. This pushes many students to go abroad to get education at relatively much lower cost. Statement of the Prime Minister in this regard that the private sector should open more medical colleges is against the interests of the students.  It is therefore important that the medical education should be in the state sector.  
   
Prominent among those who addressed include Dr Arun Mitra, Ms Amar Jeet Kaur, Dr Gagandeep Singh, Dr Param Saini, Dr Monika Dhawan, M S Bhatia, Prof. Jagmohan Singh, Ranjit Singh, Dr Gulzar Pandher, Dr Shakti Prabhakar. Progressive Writer’s Association Punjab Ludhiana unit participated in the event.