New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), of which the Prime Minister is the ex officio chairperson, for ‘failing to perform its duty’ to recommend ex gratia assistance for families of those who lost their loved ones to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The bench of justices Ashok Bhushan and MR Shah, however, clarified that the amount of ex-gratia cannot be fixed by the court, and that the Centre and NDMA should determine the quantum after taking into account their policies and other relief and mitigation measures already put in place.
The Modi-headed National Disaster Management Authority now has six weeks to frame guidelines for payouts to next of kin.
The court rejected the government’s stand that monetary compensation is optional under disaster-management laws and said ‘the national authority has failed to perform its statutory duty.’
Allowing public interest litigations by advocates Gaurav Kumar Bansal and Reepak Kansal, the bench on Wednesday held that it was a legal duty cast upon NDMA to issue uniform guidelines on ex gratia payment also because it would ‘avoid any heartburning and discriminatory treatment’ for victims residing in different states.
