A division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta andJustice Amjad Sayed was hearing a petition filed by one VivekPandit highlighting the plight of tribals in the state duringthe lockdown, which was enforced to contain the spread ofcoronavirus.
The petitioner sought a direction to the governmentand civic authorities to provide essentials to tribals inThane, Palghar, Raigad, Nashik, Dhule, Nandurbar, Jalgaon,Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Bhandara, Gondia, Nagpur, Yavatmal andAmravati districts.
Additional government pleader B V Samant told thecourt on Friday that several measures had been adopted by thegovernment to supply food grains to the tribal communityacross the state.
"A circular was also issued by the government on April27, directing all collectors to provide benefits of the PublicDistribution System to vulnerable households, especiallymigrant labourers and others," Samant told the court.
He further submitted that the process of issuingration cards to tribals was also underway.
However, the petitioner's advocate Vaibhav Bhureargued that this process was delayed as authorities wereasking for various documents, which tribals were unable tofurnish.
He urged the government to ensure that food grains andother essentials were provided to the community, keeping theprocess of issuance of ration cards in abeyance.
Samant assured the court that all essential items werereaching each and every member of the tribal community acrossthe state.
"We have no doubt in our mind that the testing timesnotwithstanding, the government would leave no stone unturnedto reach out to the members of the tribal community, who aremarginalised people, and to ensure that not a single member isleft without food and the basic necessities in these darkhours," the court said and disposed of the petition. SPARU ARU