Aishwarya Adhikari v. Union of India

1. Exemption allowed, subject to all just exceptions.

2. The applications are disposed of. W.P.(C) 12084/2019

1. This Public Interest Litigation has been preferred with the following prayers: 2019:DHC:6069-DB a) Issue a writ of mandamus or any other writ, order or direction to the Respondents to immediately establish a strong referral mechanism where the ASHA's and Anganwadi Workers will coordinate with Mohalla Clinic and take responsibility to provide prenatal, antenatal and postnatal care through Mohalla Clinics. Currently though the Mohalla Clinic is being touted as Zero Cost Model, however pregnant women and lactating mothers still have high out of pocket expenses as there is no service available for them and there is very poor outreach, with patients from near the Mohalla Clinic accessing services. b) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate writ order or direction to the Respondents to increase multi-speciality polyclinics from 25 to 191 to ensure that all the existing 191 Mohalla Clinics are supported and used to the maximum by not only pregnant and lactating mothers but the poor and the vulnerables as well. c) Issue a writ of mandamus or any other writ order or direction to the Respondents to increase the number of Mohalla Clinics to 1000 as promised the Delhi State Government. This will ensure that the entire population in need of health services are covered and can avail basic health services along with providing health-related information, education and awareness. The clinics also provide preventive services such as antenatal and postnatal care of pregnant women, assessment of nutritional status and counselling and a preventive and promotive component of National/State Health Programmes. d)Issue a writ of mandamus or any other writ order or direction to the Respondents to immediately undertake facility survey which will contribute to improved and sustained quality of care in health facilities and will assess other similar services provided through Primary Health Centre and Dispensary which are complementary or duplicate the services available in Mohalla Clinics. The facility survey will help to improve and delineate through facility-based quality improvement methods so that the same service is not provided through health centers established near to one another. The facility survey should be combined with periodic populationbased outcome evaluations and mapping of public health data, as NFS are powerful instruments for improving service delivery. e) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate writ order or direction to the Respondents to regularly undertake community monitoring as spelt out in the Government of India guidelines to enhance, safeguard and improve quality of services. f) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate writ order or directions to the Respondent to create visibility of key schemes and programmes being provided through Mohalla Clinics and other health care services. g) Issue a writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate writ order or directions to the Respondents to update the list of the functional Mohalia clinics across Delhi in the website with the date and seal. h)For any such suitable orders/s as this Hon'bie Court may deem fit and necessary taking the facts and circumstances of the case, in the interest of justice.”

2. Having heard learned counsel for both the sides and looking to the facts and circumstances of the case, it appears that this petitioner is in search of immediate establishment of a strong referral mechanism where ASHA’s and Anganwadi Workers, in coordination with each other, take responsibility to provide pre-natal, anti-natal and post-natal care through Mohalla Clinics and for increase in multi-speciality polyclinics and for such other prayers, the present writ petition has been preferred. It appears that all these prayers are nothing but the policy decisions to be taken by the respondents. We, therefore, direct the respondents to look into the grievances ventilated by this petitioner in this writ petition and if any policy decision is to be taken, the same may be taken by the respondents in accordance with law, rules, regulations and Government policy.

3. With these observations, this writ petition is hereby disposed of.

CHIEF JUSTICE NOVEMBER 18, 2019/kr C.HARI SHANKAR, J.