Delhi govt identifies over 100 hospitals bound to give free EWS treatment, SC told

New DelhiThere are at least 107 hospitals in Delhi that are bound to provide free treatment to the economically weaker sections (EWS) under the land lease clause, according to an affidavit filed by the Delhi government in the Supreme Court—over double the number of 51 hospitals that are currently facing scrutiny for non-compliance with the free treatment clause

New Delhi

In its latest affidavit filed in this matter on November 3, the Delhi government said that pursuant to information received from the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the Land & Development Office (L&DO), in addition to the 51 hospitals facing scrutiny by the court, an additional 56 hospitals have been identified . (HT Archive)

There are at least 107 hospitals in Delhi that are bound to provide free treatment to the economically weaker sections (EWS) under the land lease clause, according to an affidavit filed by the Delhi government in the Supreme Court—over double the number of 51 hospitals that are currently facing scrutiny for non-compliance with the free treatment clause.

To be sure, as per a 2018 judgment by the top court, all hospitals that received land at concessional rates are bound to provide free treatment to EWS patients, to the extent of 10% in the in-patient department (IPD) and 25% in the out-patient department (OPD) services.

In its latest affidavit filed in this matter on November 3, the Delhi government said that pursuant to information received from the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the Land & Development Office (L&DO), in addition to the 51 hospitals facing scrutiny by the court, an additional 56 hospitals have been identified as having received land as grant-in-aid or at concessional rates.

The government said that notices were served upon 28 of the 56 newly identified hospitals and replies received from 19 are being examined. Seventeen institutions did not receive notice as either the hospital was found to be non-operational or the site was used for other purposes, such as an auditorium, saloon, guest house and residential premises.

The present affidavit was filed in response to a court order on September 30 stating, “It has been brought to our notice that there are other hospitals over and above the 51 enlisted hospitals that would be falling in the category of hospitals which received government grant and would be governed by our order of which compliance is being sought in these proceedings.”

The newly identified facilities include Fortis Hospital, Shalimar Bagh; Laxmipat Singhania Medical Foundation, Apollo Hospital, Sarita Vihar, Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS), Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS), Rajiv Gandhi Super Specialty Hospital, Chacha Nehru Bal Chikitsalaya, and Delhi State Cancer Institute, among others.

Field Inspection

The Delhi government said that it conducted field inspections in line with the court orders, and found several aberrations.

A guest house was found operating at a site allotted for a hospital to Raunaq Medical Research Centre near Jangpura. A salon was found operating on the site allotted for a hospital to Shanti Memorial at Malcha Marg in Chanakyapuri. An auditorium was found functioning on land allotted to Lakshmipat Singhania Medical Foundation, while a residential property was found at a site allotted to Human Care Charitable Trust in Saket.

At some sites, the hospitals had shut long ago while in certain cases, the DDA had auctioned it to a third party for running a hospital.

To be sure, violation of the lease deed condition can result in the cancellation of the lease agreement, which paves the way for the government to hold a fresh auction. If a hospital shuts down within the lease period, the landowning agency can auction it on similar terms and conditions.

The Delhi government affidavit said, “The remarks and explanation attributed to individual hospitals or institutions are their respective submissions and are being placed on record as received, without expressing any opinion thereon”.

The government informed the court that based on the responses received from the hospitals, the land allotting agencies (DDA, MCD, L&DO) have been asked to submit a duly verified list of hospitals along with status of their compliance with the EWS free-treatment obligations. This exercise is underway.

Meanwhile, senior advocate Sanjay Jain and advocate Ninad Laud, the amici curiae appointed to assist the court in the matter, submitted a revised standard operating procedure (SOP) to be followed by the hospitals bound by the free treatment condition to ensure no poor patient is deprived of their lawful right.

The 51 hospitals already facing judicial scrutiny include Max, Fortis, Mool Chand, Primus, Vimhans, Batra, Dharamshila Narayana, Sita Ram Bharti, Sir Ganga Ram, St Stephen, Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute, Pushpawati Singhania, Jaipur Golden, and Indian Spinal Injuries Centre, among others.

The top court’s 2018 ruling stemmed from a PIL filed before the Delhi High Court seeking free treatment to the poor in hospitals that were obliged to provide the same under the land lease clause. In 2007, the Delhi High Court mandated all such hospitals to scrupulously abide by the same. This order was challenged in the Supreme Court, but it upheld the high court order and directed the Delhi government to submit periodic reports of compliance.