New Delhi: The Delhi High Court asked the city government on Friday to explain why is it yet to pay compensation to a mohalla clinic doctor who succumbed to COVID-19 in 2020.
Justice Prathiba M Singh observed that in the instant case, the fact that the deceased was a doctor and thus, eligible to receive compensation under the government scheme is not in dispute and "there is no reason why there should be so much delay" in the payment of the compensation amount to his family.
The court was hearing a petition filed by the patient's daughter and son, who claimed that despite repeated requests, they have not been given the Rs 1 crore compensation announced by the Delhi government for corona warriors as well as the Centre under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan package for such cases.
"This is not a doubtful case at all," the judge said while seeking a "specific affidavit" in relation to both the schemes from the city government.
The petitioners' lawyer said the deceased worked as a doctor at a mohalla clinic and he succumbed to Covid on June 15, 2020.
Two years and 10 months have passed since his demise but the authorities are yet to release the compensation amount, lawyer Gaurav Jain, who appeared in the court on behalf of the petitioners, argued.
The court was informed that the Delhi government took a decision in 2020 to give Rs 1 crore to the families of those who died while discharging Covid duties and a compensation amount was also announced under the prime minister's package, which is routed through the city authorities.
The petitioners have contended that their father's services were "critical for the proper management and containment of the Covid pandemic" and merely because he did not work at a dedicated Covid Centre cannot mean that he did not perform "COVID-19 duties".
The court directed that the matter be listed for hearing on May 8 when other similar matters are scheduled to come up for consideration.
The court had, on March 22, asked the city government to place before the new Group of Ministers (GoM) its order relating to the payment of Rs 1 crore compensation to the family of a police constable who died due to Covid while performing his duties.
The Delhi government had informed the court that the GoM was being re-constituted following changes in the cabinet and sought some time to place its decision before it on the issue of compensation.
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