SC disposes of PILs seeking free vaccinations of citizens

The Supreme Court on Thursday disposed of two Public Interest Litigations (PILs) seeking formulation of uniform pan India policy of free COVID-19 vaccination of everyone and giving priority to delivery persons.

New Delhi:The Supreme Court on Thursday disposed of two Public Interest Litigations (PILs) seeking formulation of uniform pan India policy of free COVID-19 vaccination of everyone and giving priority to delivery persons. A Bench headed by Justice DY Chandrachud disposed of the pleas saying there is no need to have another PIL for a pan-India policy on free vaccination as the government has already modified its policy for maximum coverage of the vaccine.

"With regard to vaccination, there has been a modification in the policy of the government for max coverage of the vaccine. In such circumstances, the counsel of the petitioner does not press the petition. We grant the counsel liberty to assist the court during suo moto COVID-19 proceedings," the Bench said. The PIL filed by the Social Democratic Party of India sought formulation of a uniform pan India policy of COVID-19 vaccination for providing free of cost to every person in India.

Another PIL filed by one Adarsh Kumar sought direction for giving priority to delivery persons in vaccination. The Bench also disposed of the plea in the wake of subsequent developments. The PIL filed by the Social Democratic Party of India during the second wave stated that under Article 21, every person in India has the invaluable right to get the vaccination free of cost. The petition further stated that if a large population, including a major chunk of poor sections is vaccinated freely, it will help in improving the herd immunity amongst the citizens.

ANI