The Allahadbad High Court pulled up the UP government for submitting data on the number of ventilators available only in state hospitals. (File Photo)
The Allahabad High Court Wednesday flagged concerns over low salaries of government doctors, observing that inadequate pay is pushing them to move to private hospitals, depriving ordinary citizens of their expertise.
The Lucknow bench of the high court was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by an NGO through its general secretary, Advocate Prince Lenin, raising concerns over the inadequate availability of ventilators in government hospitals.
A Division Bench of Justices Rajan Roy and Manjive Shukla said in its order, “It is a question to be pondered by the Union of India and the State Government as to how far it is reasonable and justified to club doctors and other specialists with other cadres of the bureaucracy for determining their pay structure.”
“The services rendered by the doctors are much more important than the services being rendered by other functionaries in the bureaucracy for obvious reasons, as it is related to the very sustenance of a citizen and the Right to Life,” — observed the bench.
The bench also sought details from the Uttar Pradesh government on whether any statutory mechanism exists to regulate private hospitals and clinics, particularly regarding treatment standards and fees charged. It directed that the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare be impleaded as a party and asked the deputy solicitor general to file a response on the regulation of private healthcare.
Hearing the PIL Wednesday, the bench pulled up the state government for submitting data on the number of ventilators available only in government hospitals.
“The question is as to whether any of the hospitals or all of them are in a position to say on affidavit that whenever a patient is admitted and requires a ventilator, the hospital is in a position to provide the same within a reasonable time or not. If not, then the giving of data as has been done in the affidavit is meaningless.”
The court stressed that the focus should be on ensuring no patient suffers due to a lack of ventilators. It noted the absence of any system to assess daily demand versus availability, calling the existing data insufficient.
“We hardly need to emphasise the Right to Life under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. Whatever the resources of the State Government, the primary allocation should be for health as it is a basic need for the very survival of a person,” the court observed further.
The bench directed the UP government to review the issue and not rely solely on meeting the National Medical Commission’s minimum norms, which require ventilators for 10–15 per cent of hospital beds.
The bench said the question is how many patients require ventilators on a given day and whether hospitals can actually meet that need, adding that mere statistics presented to it are of little value if care cannot be provided.
The court directed the government to also include in the affidavit the percentage of the budget allocated to medical facilities at various hospitals throughout the state. Autonomous institutions such as SGPGI have also been asked to review their facilities in light of the court’s observations.
The bench also sought details on the number of specialised hospitals, such as SGPGI and Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in Lucknow, that have been set up or are planned in other districts, noting that the concentration of such facilities in the capital increases the burden on patients.
The bench has also asked the government to submit details of facilities at various medical colleges, especially the newly opened institutions, in all districts, and to explain how far they meet local patient needs.
The bench also asked whether adequately skilled personnel are available to operate ventilators, and sought data on recruitment over the past five years.
The matter has been posted for further hearing on May 25.
