Overview
- Resident doctors and Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders protested at the KEM campus on Monday, with party leaders warning the change could disrupt law and order.
- The BMC health committee cleared a proposal based on minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha’s letter to rename the hospital as Kaushalyashreshtha or Kaushalya Eklavya Memorial and sent it to the municipal commissioner and the general body.
- Doctors said the KEM name reflects a century of trust and argued the move ignores urgent fixes such as broken lifts, poor hostel conditions, and irregular stipends.
- Lodha framed the change as part of reclaiming indigenous heritage by replacing colonial-era names that he said still signal foreign rule.
- The 1,800-bed public hospital trains about 2,000 medical students and treats roughly 1.8 million outpatients and 85,000 inpatients a year, so a name change could affect how patients recognize and access care.