[COVID-19] Consider a temporary ban on cigarettes, bidis if fatal: Bombay High Court suggests

The Bombay High Court on Thursday suggested that cigarettes and bidis be temporarily banned during the COVID-19 pandemic period considering it may have a correlation with the rise in COVID severe cases (Sneha Marjadi v. State of Maharashtra & Ors.)..A Bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice GS Kulkarni mused whether there were any studies to show the connection between the severity of COVID for persons smoking cigarettes and bidis considering the virus admittedly affects lungs.."If this is an issue which would matter and is fatal to the health of the citizens, we are of the opinion that measures would be required to be taken to ban sale of cigarettes and bidis during the pandemic time," the Court suggested..The Court was hearing a plea by Mumbai-based lawyer Sneha Marjadi seeking details on the availability of beds in hospitals, laboratory test facilities and procurement of Remdesivir and oxygen. The petitioner also asked the Court to monitor the situation on procurement of Remdesivir or any other effective medical drug used to treat COVID..The Court appreciated the concerns raised by the petitioner. The Court said that scarcity of Remdesivir should not have arisen and expressed hoped that production capacity will be immediately increased by the manufacturers as per the assurance given to them."The patient or his relatives shall not be made to run from pillar to post to find out/locate the drug and the drug should be made available to the patient where he is being treated," the order stated. .With regards to bed management, the Court sought information from the respondents information on the availability of the beds. They suggested forming a web portal with a helpline which would be operational 24 x 7 without any default. "A non-response to any inquiry on availability of beds from a needy person, would not be tolerated" the Court said..The Court agreed with submissions made that the State government ought to issue permission for more laboratories that can undertake the RT-PCR and rapid antigen tests to reduce pressure on existing laboratories. The Court sought a response from the State in this regard. .One of the concerns raised during the hearing of the plea against the alleged improper management of COVID-19 in Maharashtra was the severe shortage of Remdesivir drug which led to fear and panic amongst the citizens. .Due to a severe shortage of the drug, the patient and his relatives were required to hunt for the drugs in not just the same city but also in other cities. The Court noted that there was no mechanism by which the drug could be made available. ."The reasons for such shortage are manifold, including a shortfall in the quantity of its manufacturing, illegal hoarding, etc. There is total lack of control of the State authorities in its procurement and making the same available," the Court noted..The Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni and Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh tried to dispel the contents of the concerns raised in the petition. .AG submitted that the manufacturing of the drug reduced after December 2020, since the number of cases had reduced. This was followed by the present unprecedented situation of the sudden surge in the number of patients requiring administration. .However, he clarified that only 10 percent of the active patients would require this drug. It was observed, he said, that presently the infection was found more amongst the higher income class of patients. "There was also likelihood of such persons purchasing the said drug and stocking the same which has resulted into shortage and easy availability of the drug. Indiscriminate use of this drug at the insistence of the patients by the concerned hospital or doctors has also added as a contributory factor towards the shortage," said Kumbhakoni.."Under misconception as to the effect and the use of this drug, a sudden steep rise in the demand for this drug has arisen," the Court recorded..The Court directed the governments and local authorities to ensure that advisories are issued to people aware of the prevailing situation more specifically on the availability of COVID drugs through print and electronic media to avoid a situation of panic. .The Court also exhorted all citizens to discharge their duties by refraining from acts that could accelerate the spread of COVID-19.."If the fellow citizens fail to take all precautions and fail to discharge their duty towards the society, it would certainly create further complications and make it difficult to arrest the spread of the pandemic. It is high time that every citizen undertakes to discharge his solemn obligation towards the society and refrain from indulging into such activities which would bring about a further surge in the spread of this deadly virus." the Court concluded.The Court concluded their order by appreciating the steps taken by the Central and State Governments and the medical fraternity in battling the pandemic..[Read Order]