The central government told the Supreme Court on Monday that the use of the disinfection tunnel to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 infection was "clinically and psychologically harmful", following which the apex court asked the Centre why it had not banned the disinfection tunnels set up to disinfect human beings.

A three-judge bench comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan, R Subhash Reddy and MR Shah had in August issued notices to the health ministry, Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, seeking their replies on a PIL seeking an immediate ban on use, sale, installation, production and advertisement of disinfectant tunnels which sought to spray or fumigate disinfectants on human beings or expose human beings to ultra violet rays with a belief to disinfect them.

Following this, the Solicitor General informed the Supreme Court that appropriate directions regarding the disinfection tunnels will be issued by Tuesday.

The Supreme Court had on August 10 sought a response from the government on the issue. The top court was hearing a PIL filed by law student Gursimran Singh Narula seeking a ban on usage, installation, production, advertisement of disinfection tunnels involving spraying or fumigation of organic disinfectants for the purposes disinfecting human beings.

"However, in the guise of preventing COVID-19 many sanitisation and disinfection devices have emerged which wrongfully claim to be effective in preventing the spread of this virus.

"These include disinfection tunnels involving spraying and fumigation of disinfectants and disinfection tunnels exposing human beings to ultra violet rays with a belief of disinfecting them," the plea had submitted.

According to the plea, the World Health Organization and several health experts had warned of the side-effects of the usage of these tunnels and these were ineffective.