Preserve, protect lives of homeless: SC

The Supreme Court today asked the authorities to carry out its order in "letter and spirit" to "preserve and protect" the lives of homeless people by providing them roofs with all necessary facilities, especially in north India which is in the grip of intense cold wave.

The Supreme Court today asked the authorities to carry out its order in "letter and spirit" to "preserve and protect" the lives of homeless people by providing them roofs with all necessary facilities, especially in north India which is in the grip of intense cold wave.

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"The whole endeavour should be to preserve and protect the human life," a bench of justices Dalveer Bhandari and Dipak Misra said, while asking governments of the northern states to implement its order "without loss of time".

"Permanent structures will take time and winter is intense but relief has to be provided. Please ensure people's life is preserved and protected by erecting at least temporary night shelters," the bench said.

The remarks came when the court was perusing the report of the inspection of night shelters in Delhi, carried by the court-appointed commissioners and officials of Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) between January 9 to 12.

The court asked the Joint Apex Advisory Committee, comprising NGO members and Delhi government officials that looks into the issues related to homeless people, to take action on the basis of the report to "ensure" relief reaches them "without any loss of time".