SC asks Centre to consider granting break to doctors engaged in COVID-19 duty

New Delhi: The Supreme Court asked the Centre on Tuesday to consider granting break to doctors engaged in COVID-19 duty for the last seven-eight months.

The top court said that continuous work might be affecting mental health of doctors.

A bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, R S Reddy and M R Shah, which is hearing a suo motu case on proper treatment of COVID-19 patients and dignified handling of dead bodies in hospitals, asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to consider the suggestions of giving the doctors some break.

Mehta assured the bench that the government would consider the suggestion of the bench to grant some break to health workers engaged in COVID-19 duty.

“For last seven-eight months doctors have not been given any break and are continuously working. You take instruction and think over giving them some break. It must be very painful and might be affecting their mental health,” the bench told Mehta.

The top court also expressed shock that the Gujarat government has levied around Rs 90 crore fine for not wearing face masks, but has not been able to enforce the guidelines on COVID-19-appropriate behaviour.