The High Court (HC) Tuesday sought a report from Ladakh indicating facilities available for pregnant women and newborns in the newly-carved union territory.
As a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) came up for hearing, a division bench of Chief Justice Pankaj Mithal and justice Sindhu Sharma asked Assistant Solicitor General of India (ASGI) Tahir Shamsi to file the report within a month.
“A month’s time and no more is allowed to him (Shamsi) for filing the report as informed by him,” the double bench said and listed the PIL for further consideration on April 26.
In 2019, after treating a representation of an NGO as PIL, the HC had asked the government to report within four weeks about the facilities available for women and children at SKIMS Bemina hospital here.
In the representation it was highlighted that huge rush of patients was seen in the corridors of the SKIMS Bemina hospital and two to three pregnant women were seen lying on a single bed.
It was also highlighted that the OPDs were crowded in all the departments, particularly in gynecology and pediatric departments. Subsequently, the court had also extended its directions in the PIL to maternity care facilities in Ladakh UT.