New Delhi: The Supreme Court Friday pulled up the central government over reports about non-payment of salary and lack of proper accommodation to doctors engaged in fight against Covid-19.
The court was hearing a PIL, filed by Dr Arushi Jain, challenging the central government’s new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for frontline Covid-19 healthcare workers which ended the mandatory 14-day quarantine for doctors. The new SOP was issued on 15 May.
Expressing concern over the reports, the bench, led by Justice Ashok Bhushan, remarked that the country cannot afford to have dissatisfied soldiers in a war.
“Covid crisis is like a war and doctors are the government’s soldiers. Such matters should not require court intervention,” the bench told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.
Mehta, on behalf of the government, promised that the issues will be taken up with higher authorities.
The bench also lamented the lack of proper accommodation for doctors wanting quarantine facilities.
The court had, on 27 May, sought the central government’s response to the petition filed by Jain. In an affidavit filed on 3 June, the central authorities told the top court that healthcare workers had the “final responsibility” of protecting themselves from Covid-19.
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‘Government needs to do more for doctors’
The petitioner’s lawyer, senior advocate K.V. Vishwanathan, said the government has failed to protect its frontline warriors.
Asking Mehta to look into the issues raised in the petition, the bench said, “You need to do more. Make sure their concerns are addressed, then only citizens can be addressed. Imagine if they work half-heartedly.”
It also cited media reports about doctors threatening to quit if their demands were not met.
‘Quarantining of doctors needed’
Senior advocate Vishwanathan said doctors needed separate accommodation as it was not advisable for them to go home from the hospitals. “It involves the safety of their family members,” he said.
Mehta then informed the bench that the protocol on doctors’ quarantine was fixed by a high-powered panel with suggestions from the Indian Council of Medical Research, All India Institute of Medical Sciences and other central government institutes.
“If there are better suggestions (by the petitioner) they can be accommodated,” he assured the bench.
The court has fixed 17 June to hear the matter again. Before that, it said, the government must “sort out the issues.”
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