The Delhi government has said that a mobile app is being built to provide live updates of available hospital beds. (File)
New Delhi:
Taking note of a video sequence on social networks of a man who had to fight to hospitalize his mother after being tested positive for the coronavirus, the High Court of Delhi ordered the Center and the government of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP ) to specify the arrangements made to deal with these patients.
Observing that the video “raises serious problems of public interest in the current context”, a bench of judges Vipin Sanghi and Rajnish Bhatnagar issued several instructions, in particular by making the helplines for reporting cases of coronavirus effective, by assessing their adequacy to cope with the increasing traffic call and providing ambulance services to take patients.
He urged the two governments to submit the status of the operational and responsive hotlines they operate. He also appointed an amicus curiae to review the grievances raised in the video.
“Amicus curiae must also call helplines and report on their effectiveness in providing assistance to callers,” said the bench.
The court, which took cognizance of the press cut, also ordered the Delhi government and the Center to respond to grievances reported by the man – Dharmendra Bhardwaj – who alleged in the video that “big claims” of the two governments regarding the provisions for COVID-19 patients “are far from true in the field”.
He said his mother was admitted to a private hospital on May 19 and tested positive for COVID-19 on May 21.
Subsequently, the private hospital asked him to arrange for a ventilator and a bed in another hospital, he said and added that he had visited several hospitals, but to no avail.
Even the helplines published by the Delhi government and the Center were not answered, said Bhardwaj in the video which was recorded by the High Court.
Taking note of its grievances, the bench observed that a person, who or whose family or friend is found COVID-19 positive, should be able to call helplines not only to report such an event, but also to seek advice and help regarding: hospitals where such a patient can be taken – if hospitalization is necessary taking into account the patient’s condition.
“The helplines should provide significant and effective assistance to the appellants. If the experience of Dharmendra Bhardwaj is something that is going on, it seems that this aspect has not been adequately addressed by the respondents (government of Central and Delhi), “said the court. .
He instructed them “to assess the adequacy of the capacity of the hotline and to indicate whether it is sufficient to handle current and expected traffic for the foreseeable future, taking into account of the continuous increase in the number of cases reported every day. ” “.
The bench said: “The GNCTD helplines should also provide advice and information to the caller as to which hospital has beds available for the treatment of serious COVID-19 patients – both in public and private hospitals, especially near the caller, the patient’s location. “
The capacity created to handle calls made to helpline numbers; the nature of the assistance provided, and the journal kept for the same thing, if any, should also be submitted to the Court, he added.
The court ordered the Delhi government to consider providing an ambulance for the care of serious COVID-19 patients for hospitalization, after an appellant reported a serious case that appeared to require hospitalization given the reported condition.
During the hearing, the Delhi government’s permanent (criminal) lawyer, Rahul Mehra, testified that there were about 10 hotlines and admitted that they “were not working efficiently and instructions have been issued to put the system in order. “
He told the court that the same thing would be done in the coming days.
Mehra also informed the bench that a mobile application is being developed to provide live updates of hospital beds available in Delhi’s public and private hospitals, as well as other related information.
He told the court that the mobile app will be launched in the coming days.
“We instruct the central government, as well as the government of the territory of the National Capital of Delhi, to file their situation reports on all the aspects mentioned in the said video recording and those that we have taken note of, before the next date of hearing, “said the court.
He ordered the registry to refer the case on June 3 to the judiciary headed by the chief judge with respect to PIDs.
