Give basic amenities in shelter homes in 48 hours: Delhi HC

New Delhi, Feb 2 (PTI) The Delhi High Court todaydirected MCD to provide within 48 hours the basic amenities,including water supply and toilet, in some of the shelterhomes meant for the homeless people in the city.

A Division Bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra andJustice Sanjiv Khanna directed the Urban Shelter ImprovementBoard of MCD to also provide 10 mobile toilets within a weekbesides directing the concerned ministry of NCT government toform a team of officials and take steps to construct permanenttoilets in various shelter homes within two months.

The court also directed the police to make an inquiryinto reportedly delivery of a child by a woman in a Pusa Roadpark despite the court''s earlier directions to set up homesfor destitute pregnant women''s care.

Seeking the city government''s concerned authority totake appropriate steps to control recurrence of such incidentshere, the bench asked the police to file its probe report bythe next date of hearing.

The court order came after the petitioner''s lawyerargued that it became difficult for the homeless to stay inshelter homes as the civic agency has failed to providebasic amenities.

The Bench was hearing a PIL after taking suo motucognisance on the basis of media reports about the demolitionof a Pusa Road night shelter in December last and the chargethat the city government and the civic bodies were doingnothing to protect the homeless from biting cold in Januarylast year.