Decongest Asha Kiran shelter home, urgently recruit doctors: Delhi HC

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday asked the Social Welfare Department Secretary to take urgent steps to recruit employees, including doctors, for the Asha Kiran shelter home for people with intellectual disability where 14 inmates died last month.

The Secretary, who was earlier directed to visit the shelter home and file a report, said the establishment has to be decongested as 961 inmates were lodged there against a capacity of 570. The court was also informed that there were 12 medical vacancies at the shelter home as well as several non-medical vacancies.

A Bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela asked the Secretary to recruit people on contractual basis to deal with the “emergency” and place the requisition before the competent authorities for approval. It added that if the sanction is not given, it will pass a judicial order.