Supreme Court Asks Center to Counsel Migrants Workers:
(Judicial Quest News Network)
The Supreme Court Today Directed Centre to provide food and shelter to Migrant workers left helpless after a 21-day lockdown was imposed across the country to Control the spread of Coronavirus.
Supreme Court was hearing different two PILs filed one by Advocate Rashmi Bansal, Anuj Gupta famous social Activists and the other filed Advocate Alok Srivastava.
“You ensure that all those whose migration you have stopped are taken care of in terms of food, Shelter Nourishment and medical aid.” Chief Justice SA Bobde told the Central Government, Represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.
“We want to impress upon you that the panic will destroy more lives than the Virus. You need Counsellors. You can have Bhajan, Kirtan, Namaz or whatever but you have to give strength to people. “said the Court urging the Government to rope in leaders of all faiths to counsel the migrants in the shelters. “Ensure trained counsellors and community leaders of all faiths visit relief camps and prevent panic. “it said.
The Solicitor General Mr. Tushar Mehta ensured to the Court that the Government will mobilise trained counsellors and religious leaders within 24 hours, we will mobilise religious leaders, maulvis, sadhus to counsel them to stay calm.
SC said that there is no migrant worker on the road “as of 11 am today”, all have been put up in shelters.
Tushar Mehta said that Government had ensured food packets and the same are provided to homeless daily workers-day meal kitchens, railway caterers, religious trusts and corporates have been being roped in to provide food to them.
According to the Central Control Room 6,63,000 people have been provided shelter so far, he added.
Mehta further submitted that Centre had further enhanced the testing capacity from a single laboratory to in January to1189 labs across the country, with a total capacity of 15,000 tests per day.
Advocate Rashmi Bansal one of the petitioners argued before the bench that the report submitted by the centre does not mention anything about sanitization or social distancing in the shelters that are being set up.
She argued that mechanism needs to be set up for sanitization as the shelters are crowded. The hearing is now fixed for Tuesday 7th April 2020. For further hearing
