Mumbai: Observing that a number of lives might have been saved if the Centre had began door-to- door vaccination programme for the aged and bed-ridden a number of months in the past, the Bombay High Court on Wednesday requested the Union authorities why not pro- actively begin this programme when the lives of senior residents, who’re unable to go to vaccination centres to get inoculated, are involved.
A division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice G S Kulkarni reiterated the court docket’s earlier order of April 22 through which it requested the Union authorities to relook at its resolution to not provoke a door-to-door vaccination programme.
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“It has been three weeks and the government (Union) is yet to inform us of its decision. The government should have taken a decision one way or the other,” the High Court stated directing the Centre to file an affidavit by May 19 when it could subsequent hear the matter.
Hearing a PIL filed by two attorneys looking for door-to-door vaccination facility for senior residents above the age of 75, specially-abled individuals and those that are bed-ridden or wheelchair-bound, the High Court famous that many overseas international locations have already began door-to-door vaccination amenities.
“In India, we do many things late and things travel to our country very slowly,” PTI quoted Justice Kulkarni as saying.
The High Court stated it had seen pictures of senior residents and lots of wheelchair-bound individuals ready outdoors vaccination centres in lengthy queues.
“This was very heart-rending and not a good sight. They must be already suffering from so many ailments and now they face the risk of being infected with COVID-19 also (while) waiting in such crowds,” the bench said.
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Noting that senior High Court judges had a meeting with Brihanmumbai Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Chahal on Tuesday where he said the civic body was planning to start ward-wise vaccination camps from next week with the capacity to inoculate 70,000 people per day, the bench directed the BMC to file an affidavit stating details of the same and by when it would begin and what steps the corporation plans to take for the next few days with regard to the vaccination programme.
The High Court also asked the BMC about what measures it plans to take for the vaccination of homeless people, beggars and those living on streets stating “they are also a significant population and are spreaders of the coronavirus”.
