Quality of healthcare services in Delhi dismal: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court, September 2, 2024 directed the director of AIIMS to ensure that the recommendations made by the six-member expert committee, led by Dr SK Sarin, for enhancing services at Delhi government-run hospitals are implemented diligently.

To implement the directives, the Director of AIIMS must undertake all necessary actions, including forming the required team or task force, to ensure the reports and court orders are carried out promptly and efficiently.

If the emergency units of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) hospitals are not working well, director of AIIMS should administer and manage them through AIIMS staff and / or contractual staff. The funds for this should be provided by the GNCTD, the order said.

The AIIMS director is authorized to purchase or lease equipment, machinery, and medications as per AIIMS norms. The GNCTD will supply the necessary funds for this. Additionally, the director can seek CSR donations for funding if needed.

The Chief Secretary, Finance Secretary, and Principal Secretary (Home) of GNCTD are instructed to promptly implement any decisions made by the Director of AIIMS Delhi. This includes decisions regarding the contractual hiring of paramedics, staff or doctors until permanent recruitment is conducted through DSSSB or UPSC, according to the order.

The issue was brought before the High Court following a letter dated August 26, 2024, from Dr SK Sarin, Chairman of the Committee of Doctors, appointed by the court's order on February 13, 2024.

The letter indicated that for overseeing and verifying the implementation of the recommendations, 'the committee members face difficulties as 4 out of 6 members are employed by hospitals managed by the Delhi Government, making them subordinates to the Government.' The committee asked the High Court to relieve them of this duty and assign another committee for the task.

A bench led by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan stated that if four senior doctors from GNCTD, after creating a thorough and well-considered pro-bono report, step back from executing the Court's mandate to monitor and verify the implementation of its recommendations, it indicates issues within the Health Department of GNCTD.

The High Court also acknowledged the remarks made by senior officials of the Health Department, GNCTD, in the media. While the Health Minister, GNCTD, holds officials responsible for the deplorable conditions in GNCTD hospitals, the Administrator, GNCTD, attributes the disorder and chaos in Delhi hospitals to the political establishment in Delhi.

The court noted that a few months ago, in a different proceeding, it had advised the Health Secretary and Health Minister of GNCTD to collaborate harmoniously to enhance healthcare quality for Delhi's citizens. The Delhi High Court observed that instead of combating disease and misinformation, the GNCTD Health Department appears to be in disarray.

The court remarked that the evident lack of agreement between the bureaucrats and the Minister has led to poor healthcare services in Delhi, with the general public suffering due to the negligence and indifference of those accountable for the current situation.

Pace of expenditure for river cleaning projects under the National Clean Ganga Mission extremely slow

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) expressed serious concern over the slow progress of river cleaning projects being carried out in different states under the National Clean Ganga Mission and directed the authorities on August 30, 2024 to file their reply before the court.

The tribunal has ordered that a notice be sent to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the National Mission for Clean Ganga, and the Ministry of Jal Shakti. The next hearing for the case is scheduled for December 11, 2024.

The application was registered suo motu based on a news article titled 'Clean Ganga mission head flags extremely slow pace of project expenditures,' which appeared in the newspaper The Hindu on August 19, 2024.

According to the article, various projects have been initiated since 2015 as part of the Namami Gange mission, which is the most expensive and crucial in developing sewage-management infrastructure.

In total, nearly ₹37,550 crore have been sanctioned for various Namami Gange projects, but only ₹18,033 crore had been spent as of June 2024. Sewage infrastructure projects alone account for ₹15,039 crores of the latter amount.

The article noted that the director general of NMCG observed that the expenditure pace is extremely slow. The news item also mentioned that Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of projects, and when questioned about the slow expenditure pace, authorities there responded that ₹15.16 crore had been spent on six projects in Jaunpur, Kasganj, Varanasi, Bareilly, Salori, and Agra, with payments amounting to ₹25 crore still being processed.

Disappearance of water bodies in Delhi and urban flooding

The NGT, August 30 instructed the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti (water resources), Delhi Wetland Authority and other relevant bodies to submit their responses regarding the issue of urban flooding in Delhi and its link to the vanishing water bodies. Additionally, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, Central Pollution Control Board and Geospatial Delhi Ltd have also been asked to provide their replies.

The application was registered suo motu based on the news which appeared in the newspaper Hindustan Times August 16, 2024.

According to the article, while brief episodes of heavy rain and climate change play a role, experts primarily blame the issue on the loss of water bodies and wetlands in the area, along with insufficient drainage systems.

The news article also pointed out that the Delhi government's strategy to minimize solid waste dumps indirectly affects wetlands. This policy includes filling low-lying areas with chemically inert waste, which decreases water absorption space and exacerbates flooding by overloading storm drains.

Additionally, the reduction of wetlands and the soil's natural absorption capacity culminates in severe urban flooding in Delhi, according to the news piece.

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