The ghastly conditions in Delhi’s home for the mentally challenged ‘Asha Kiran’ revealed by Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) whose chairperson Swati Maliwal accompanied by her team paid a surprise visit to, is utterly shocking and disconcerting. That as many as 11 inmates lost their lives in the last two months is a reflection of how these hapless people are subjected to sub-human conditions which require to be remedied forthwith.
Gross violations of human rights, extremely unhygienic toilets and shortage of staff marked the upkeep of this centre for exposing which the DCW deserves to be commended strongly. As the NCW team has pointed out, 450 women and children were crammed into a decaying, fetid space having a sanctioned capacity of 350. Four persons were found sharing each mattress and toilets were extremely unhygienic. Blankets were in short supply for the inmates in the winter season and even wheel chairs were not being used as women and children in need were crawling on the floor unattended to reach the toilets.
That this should be the condition of an ‘Asha Kiran’ which literally means a ray of hope, in the nation’s capital is a sad commentary on a system that thinks nothing of providing the basic amenities and succour to such a disadvantaged section of society that desperately needs care, love and solace. Only one psychiatrist visits the home and several posts of doctors were vacant. There was no guard stationed at the entrance of the female wing, according to the litany of woes outlined by the DCW.
It so transpires that the social welfare department of the Delhi administration is the one that is incharge of the ‘home.’ The DCW has asked the department to explain the gross negligence and mismanagement of ‘Asha Kiran’ within 72 hours. It is indeed time that some heads are made to roll so that it serves as a deterrent for the future. If Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia is at the pinnacle of the administration, he must also be called to account and punished. The Aam Aadmi Party that he is a part of is forever so quick in passing the buck. The buck must stop with them.
