Assess lockdown impact on weaker sections: HC to State 

BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court has said it is appropriate for the State Government to convene a meeting to assess the lockdown’s impact on the unorganised class of labourers, transgenders and other weaker sections, and come out with steps to provide them with food.

Issuing directions to the Advocate General to convene a meeting of all stakeholders and consider their views on food security, during a special sitting held to hear the PILs arising out of Covid-19, a division bench of Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Aravind Kumar said that due to lockdown and a huge surge in cases, the issue of food security among the weaker sections and the issue of relief to workers will require urgent attention.

In reply, Advocate General Prabhuling K Navadagi submitted that he will hold a meeting of members of the Bar to discuss the issues of unorganised labour, transgenders and others. Meanwhile, the court asked the Advocate General to look into the suggestions made by the committee constituted by the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority to oversee the Covid situation.

The committee, comprising Justices AN Venugopala Gowda and KN Keshavanarayana, former HC judges, and KSLSA member secretary HN Shashidhar Shetty, submitted the report containing recommendations after visiting the public hospital at Jayanagar, and Sagar and Apollo Hospitals in the city. The court observed that most of the suggestions are welcoming, while a few require response from the State Government. 

Hunger Helpline
The State Government informed the court that the Labour Department has activated the contact number ‘155214’, which could be utilised as the food/hunger helpline in the present situation. This helpline will also be used for employees to raise complaints regarding non-payment of wages and other work-related issues.