HC directs for selective lockdown
HC directs for selective lockdown
By D Tripathi
PRAYAGRAJ: Allahabad High Court suggested that “the best choice today is to close down things for a while, though selectively, to force people to confine themselves to their homes, in view of spreading corona cases.
Hearing a PIL seeking better conditions at the quarantine centres, a division bench comprising Justice Siddhartha Varma and Justice Ajit Kumar observed, “We do not doubt the government’s will but we are equally conscious that measures taken are not enough and are needed to be made more severe and stringent but of course, workable too at the same time.”
“When we have to balance between bread and butter and life, the latter has to prevail. Food is for life to survive and not vice-versa. We do not think that a lockdown for a fortnight would bring the economy of the state to such a halt that people would die of hunger,” the court further observed.
Taking note of rising cases of Covid-19 in the state, the court also directed the chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh to apprise it whether there was any plan of action to contain the infection when the economy was reopened after nationwide lockdown and whether it was ever implemented.
The court also asked the chief secretary to inform if any action had been taken against the district authorities who had not followed the planning, if there was any.
HC directs for selective lockdown
The chief secretary has also been asked to come up with a roadmap to contain the contagion from now onwards by the next date of hearing.
Lastly, the court observed, “Putting people to challan/fine and then letting them go and the insufficient police force to do round the clock patrolling in lanes and by lanes in the district not only consumes public measure and machinery but minimal results are being achieved.”
The High Court on several dates of hearing had issued various directions to contain the spread of novel coronavirus in the state.
