The Delhi High Court on Friday directed a private hospital in Rohini to provide continued medical treatment under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category to a 12-year-old boy critically injured after falling from a building, ensuring that his family is not burdened with further medical expenses.
A bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Manmeet PS Arora took suo motu cognisance of a newspaper report detailing the plight of the child, identified as Rishabh Singh Parihar, who required urgent ventilator support after his fall on August 19. Despite his father’s modest earnings as a daily wager, the family was forced to seek admission at Shree Aggarsain International Hospital when government hospitals failed to provide a ventilator bed.
The court, after speaking directly with the boy’s uncle over a phone call, initially considered shifting him to a government hospital. However, noting improvement in his medical condition, the bench decided against transfer and ordered that he be treated under the EWS quota until the next hearing.
“The child shall be considered in the EWS category and no payment shall be demanded by the hospital from the parents of the child till the next date of hearing,” the bench said, posting the matter for September 2. The order was directed to be communicated to the hospital’s head.
The court further clarified that the private hospital must continue treatment without interruption or demand for fees, given the family’s dire financial condition. The child’s father has already spent nearly ₹2 lakh on medical expenses, largely through borrowed funds.
The newspaper report highlighted that after initial treatment at a government hospital, the boy developed severe complications including headache, nose bleeding, and vomiting, forcing the family to shift him to the private facility. Attempts to secure admission at Ambedkar Hospital were unsuccessful, with the family advised instead to try Safdarjung or G B Pant Hospitals.
Advocate Ashok Agarwal, appearing as amicus curiae in a connected matter, pointed out that private hospitals often fail to fully implement their binding obligation to provide treatment under the EWS category and called for stricter enforcement.
The Delhi government’s health secretary informed the court that once the Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) is fully rolled out, real-time availability of ICU beds in government hospitals will be accessible to the public, potentially preventing such crises in the future.
