Unfortunately, the Delhi High Court has risen to the call in response to the situation in the Asha Kiran shelter in Rohini, where at least fourteen residents have died in July, specifically.
The court has ordered DJB to conduct a quality check of water and check the status of water and sewerage lines in the shelter home as soon as possible.
This order follows the controversy that emanated from the bench, where the court questioned the high death rates and noted that “14 deaths in number. It cannot be a coincidence. ”
Worse still, in its order, the court has also included the Secretary of the Delhi government’s Social Welfare Department to go to the Asha Kiran Complex and produce a report on the home residents’ living conditions.
A recapitulation of the last stated observations shows that all the deceased were due to TB in the patients; Delhi Jal Board is ordered to conduct the quality of water immediately along with the condition of water and sewer pipeline as well as file in the court,” observed the Bench comprising Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela.
The court has also noted that the need for decongesting the shelter home has been observed and held that if there are many occupants in the complex, they must be relocated to an appropriate place.
The unfortunate circumstances of the Asha Kiran shelter home have led to a public uproar. AAP MLA Kuldeep Kumar, aghast, claimed negligence and realized that the institution employed an administrative head who had earlier been arrested by the CBI on a charge of bribery.
At the same time the authorities race to gather their response, the Delhi High Court rightly steps in to emphasize the necessity of tending to the health and safety of the defenceless inhabitants of the Asha Kiran shelter home.
The results obtained from the water quality tests and the report on the living conditions shall play an important role in formulating the next course of action to avoid the reoccurrence of similar disasters.
