High Court of Meghalaya
Lurshaphrang Shongwan vs . Union Of India & Ors on 21 February, 2022
Serial No. 01
Regular List
HIGH COURT OF MEGHALAYA
AT SHILLONG
PIL No.14/2021
Date of Order: 21.02.2022
Lurshaphrang Shongwan Vs. Union of India & ors
Coram:
Hon'ble Mr. Justice Sanjib Banerjee, Chief Justice
Hon'ble Mr. Justice W. Diengdoh, Judge
Appearance:
For the Petitioner/Appellant (s) : In-person
For the Respondent (s) : Ms. L Jana vice Dr. N Mozika, ASG
Mr. ND Chullai, AAG with
Mr. AH Kharwanlang, GA
Mr. R Debnath, Adv for R/7
JUDGMENT: (per the Hon'ble, the Chief Justice) (Oral)
An affidavit has been filed by the Secretary in the Department of
Health and Family Welfare, Government of Meghalaya indicating the
facilities available for cancer patients in the State and the State
government's efforts to improve the number of beds and augment the
measures of treatment imparted to cancer patients at the Shillong
Government Hospital and the like.
2. However, a lot more needs to be done and many more beds ought
to be added considering the number of cancer patients in the State. The
petitioner has made several suggestions in the petition. Most of the
suggestions, if they were implemented, would entail huge expenditure and
the Court is not in a position to assess the finances available to the State
government nor will the Court issue a mandamus in such regard. Suffice it
to say that the facilities for cancer patients are inadequate and serious and
large-scale augmentation is necessary, in addition to what has been done or
it is proposed to be done.
3. According to the petitioner, the suggestions that have been made
in the writ petition ought to be accepted. Since every measure that the State
government is required to take involves expenses and depends on the
available funds and resources obtained from the Centre, all that the Court
can do in such a situation is to act as a catalyst to ensure that proper
measures are taken as expeditiously as possible so that a system is put in
place which is able to deal with the needs of the people in the State suffering
from cancer.
4. PIL No.14 of 2021 is disposed of by requesting the State to
implement the plans indicated in the affidavit filed by the Secretary in the
Department of Health and Family Welfare and also take into account the
suggestions put forth by the petitioner in the petition, subject to cost
constraints.
5. It may also do well to recount that in a matter where this Court
discovered that tax has been illegally obtained from a class of persons by the
State, the Court required 30 per cent of the funds collected illegally by the
State to be invested in purchasing specialised equipment for the newly
refurbished oncology unit at the Government Hospital in Shillong. Indeed,
the CAG has been required to monitor that the appropriate amount is infused
by the State for obtaining advanced machinery for cancer treatment. The
disposal of this petition will not stand in the way of the petitioner or anyone
else applying afresh after the expiry of a year to allow the government to put
in place the measures that have been indicated in the said affidavit. If the
facilities available by June, 2023 are not adequate to deal with the cancer
patients in the State, the petitioner will have liberty to apply afresh in Court.
6. There will be no order as to costs.
(W. Diengdoh) (Sanjib Banerjee)
Judge Chief Justice
Meghalaya
21.02.2022
"Lam DR-PS"
