The Telangana High Court on Wednesday directed the State government to file an affidavit as to how many temporary shelter homes were set up in the backdrop of COVID-19 and what medical facilities were being extended to the inmates of the homes.
After taking up a letter written by lawyer Vasudha Nagaraj on the conditions of these shelter homes as PIL petition, a bench of Chief Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan and Justice T. Amarnath Goud sought details of thermal screenings at the homes. Stating that she had visited some of the shelter homes, the lawyer said inmates of the homes included women discharged after delivery from hospitals carrying newborn babies and men discharged after critical surgeries. Their attendants too are there, she said.
A woman who had recently delivered a baby and another woman who had undergone orthopedic surgery could not sit on the floor. “….they were sitting in the chairs throughout the night as they could not lie on the floor..,” the lawyer said in the letter quoting the staff manning the shelter homes. Same was the condition of men who underwent surgeries.
The Advocate General told the court that adequate number of test kits were available with the government and thermal screening was undertaken at all shelter homes. The bench directed the AG to present details like how many persons were subjected to tests for coronavirus in hot-spot or containment zones in the State.
In another PIL petition seeking direction on security arrangements for doctors, the bench directed the government that to put behind bars persons attacking doctors or health workers. The bench made it clear that such persons should not be spared and stringent action should be initiated against them.
Ration card holders
Referring to government report filed in another PIL petition, the bench sought clarification regarding the number of ration card holders who were supplied with ration. While the government records say there are over 80 lakh ration cards, the reports mention that 50 lakh of them were provided with ration. What about the fate of the remaining card holders, the bench sought to know.