We’ll permit door-to-door vax if Centre does not: HC
MUMBAI: The Bombay high court (HC) directed the Maharashtra government and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) not to wait for the Central government’s permission to conduct door-to-door vaccination drive for the elderly and differently abled persons who cannot go out to get inoculated.
The HC, while rapping the Centre for consulting experts who did not recommend doorto-door vaccination initiative, said the experts were probably unaware of ground realities such as people living in houses where even a stretcher cannot be manoeuvered. The court has asked the state and BMC to file an affidavit on how it proposes to conduct the door-to-door vaccination by Thursday.
The division bench of chief justice Dipankar Datta and justice Girish Kulkarni, while hearing the public interest litigation (PIL) filed by advocates Dhruti Kapadia and Kunal Tiwari, was informed that the Centre failed to give a favourable response to the court’s direction in an earlier hearing on May 12 on whether the door-to-door vaccination could be implemented. The PIL sought directions to the Centre, the state and BMC to provide door-to-door vaccination for people over 75 years of age, differently abled people and those who are bed-ridden.
Kapadia also said BMC had failed to devise a formula to identify beggars without photo IDS required for vaccination and to provide a helpline number to enable advanced age senior citizens to book an appointment for home visit for vaccination as all citizens cannot access internet.
Additional solicitor general Anil Singh, for the Union of India, informed the court that the direction was referred to the committee of experts and they had filed a response stating that as there were post-vaccination protocols to be observed and the same could not be facilitated at individual homes, door-to-door vaccination could not be permitted. He, however, added that transport arrangements could be made for elderly citizens.
Kapadia submitted that some of the elderly and differently abled persons lived in extremely difficult conditions and it was not possible to take such persons to the centres even in stretchers.
After hearing the submissions, the court said, “If the Centre does not permit it (door-todoor vaccination, we will. Saving lives is more important.”
The bench directed BMC chief to apprise it as to if it was possible to introduce door-to-door vaccination under medical care and posted hearing to May 20.
Dr Mangala Gomare, chief of BMC’S public health department, said, “If the court allows us to do door-to-door vaccination, we will make our stand clear by filing affidavit after discussing it with senior officials.”