THOTTATHIL B. RADHAKRISHNAN, J.

1. The captioned Writ Petition (PIL), a Public Interest Litigation; for short 'PIL', is filed seeking, inter alia, direction to the State of Chhattisgarh and Officers under it including the Director of Health Services and the Commissioner, Health and Family Welfare Department to close down a llillegal nursing homes, clinics and pathology / patholabs and to prevent illegal medical practice in the State of Chhattisgarh. Further direction to the official Respondents to initiate enquiry against those who are permitting the illegal running of nursing homes and such other institutions, is also sought for.

2. When the PIL came up for hearing on 07.02.2017, this Court noticed Annexure P/2 therewith, which is a communication by the Block Medical Officer, Marwahi, District-Bilaspur enlisting the unauthorized nursing homes functioning in that Block and another list which gives the unauthorised clinics and the names of the persons illegally engaged in medical practice. A direction was issued on that day requiring personal affidavits to be filed by the Chief Medical & Health Officer, Bilaspur and the Director, Health Services regarding the action, if any, taken to ensure that unauthorised persons do not engage in medical practice. Different postings went through, which ultimately led to the order dated 16.03.2017being issued in the presence of the Director of Health Services, Deputy Director of Health Services and other officers. It was then submitted before this Court by the Director of Health Services that Committees have been constituted sometime in the month of August, 2013 in obedience to the order issued by this Court in Writ Petition (PIL) No. 31 of 2012.However, he did not have the details of each district ready with him, though he stated that the Committee had taken action against those persons who were unauthorisedly practicing as Doctors. The Director was required to file affidavit, having regard to the larger interest involved in the matter. In the light of the judgments of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in State of Punjab and others v. Mohinder Singh Chawla and Others, (1997) 2 SCC 83 and Paschim Banga Khet Mazdoor Samityand others v. State of W.B. and another, (1996) 4 SCC 37, this Court noted that right to health is integral to the right to life and the State has an obligation under Article 21 of the Constitution to safeguard the right to life of every person and that providing adequate medical facilities to the people constitutes an essential part of the obligations of the State for achieving people's welfare and the Government Hospitals and Medical Officers are duty bound to provide medical assistance to the needy for saving human life.

3. We have called for and perused the order dated 22.02.2013 in Writ Petition (PIL) No.31 of 2012, referred to in the immediately preceding paragraph. That writ petition was ordered by this Court in the light of the submission on behalf of the State of Chhattisgarh and other official Respondents that a District Committee as well as Committees at Block level have been constituted in district Janjgir-Champa to monitor the menace of the quacks. It was directed that if similar committees have not been constituted in all other districts, such committees shall be constituted for all other districts and the Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare shall also obtain quarterly or half-yearly or yearly reports from them regarding the action taken by the committees.

4. Following the order dated 16.03.2017 referred to in paragraph No.2above, the affidavit of the Director of Health Services was placed before this Court. Annexure-III, a tabular statement placed therewith, reflected the gross deficiencies in the management of the issues by the State Authorities, except to some extent in some other districts including the district of Bilaspur. It was then noticed that the issues in hand are multifaceted and requires to be dealt with by the collective effo