HC: No doubt Delhi govt will proactively deal with pandemic to save lives

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday disposed of a petition to increase COVID-19 testing it had been hearing since the outbreak last year, remarking that it "had no doubt the Delhi government will act in a proactive manner to deal with the pandemic and the post-virus complications to save the precious lives of the citizens of Delhi".

A bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Rekha Palli made the observation after perusing a status report filed by the Delhi government stating that it was "actively considering" an expert committee's recommendations which included providing telemedicine facilities for those suffering from post-COVID health issues. The committee had also recommended that the post-COVID-19 follow up clinics already functioning in major hospitals in Delhi from mid-October 2020 may also be set up in other COVID designated hospitals. Delhi government additional standing counsel Satyakam told the bench that the recommendations were being actively considered and suitable decisions would be taken at the earliest.

The court further observed that the daily number of fresh COVID-19 cases being reported was substantially lower now than at the peak of the infection. It also noted that the vaccination programme was due to be rolled from next week and according to press reports it appeared that large-scale arrangements were being made to ensure the full rollout of the vaccination process. "In view of present circumstances, we are of the view that the petition has served its purpose and therefore, we need not keep it pending any further," the bench said.