House surgeons at Government Medical College Hospital here continued their indefinite strike on Wednesday (September 2, 2026), alleging a shortage of medicines and basic treatment facilities in the Emergency department.

The doctors said the medical college, established under the Backward Classes Welfare department during the Oommen Chandy-led UDF government more than a decade ago, lacked essential facilities.

They alleged that the Emergency department did not have X-ray or scanning services, affecting the treatment of accident victims.

The protest was triggered after two persons injured in an accident near the Emergency department could not receive immediate treatment and had to be shifted to the Government District Hospital, Palakkad.

Following the incident, house surgeons boycotted outpatient services and began a protest on the campus. The medical college Principal has since ordered that postgraduate doctors be deployed in various departments, including the Emergency department, to ensure services.

The house surgeons said they would continue the strike until the hospital’s basic infrastructure is improved and emergency facilities, including X-ray and scanning, are provided.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers staged a separate protest by locking the Principal inside his office. BJP Palakkad east president Prasanth Sivan led the protest.

The BJP alleged that despite claims about the medical college’s development, the institution lacked basic infrastructure. The protest ended after police removed the workers from the college.