Bombay HC says PIL by NGO on Covid-19 management in Mumbai raises 'pivotal issues', seeks reply from BMC

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Amjad Sayed on Tuesday said that a a public interest litigation (PIL) by an NGO “raises pivotal issues relating to management of crisis trigger by Covid-19’’ and directed BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to file a detailed affidavit on concerns over “low rate of testing for Covid-19 and inaccessibility of economically weaker section to such tests.’’
The PIL filed by Jan Swasthya Abhiyan said its counsel Mihir Desai raised issue of how “front-line workers at non-Covid hospitals and wards are not being provided with Personal Protective Equipments (PPE); 20% of the beds which are required to be reserved for poor patients in private hospitals are not being reserved; guidelines relating to quarantine centres are not being followed; and administration of hydroxychloroquine to the patients having symptoms of Covid-19 despite not being permitted by the extant medical protocol, is being administered,’’ noted the bench.
The state pleader PP Kakade filed an affidavit broadly saying it was following the guidelines laid down by the centre while BMC counsel Anil Sakhare sought further time to file its affidavit. The HC directed the state to file an additional affidavit on points raised in the PIL and adjourned the matter to May 19.
The PIL said testing in India as on April 13 was “lowest in the world at 177 per million population’’ and that “reports have emerged of hydroxychloroquine use on people as tests in some parts of Mumbai.’’