Delhi HC registers PIL on financial assistance under Centre’s Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi

New Delhi, Apr 22 (PTI) The Delhi High Court on Monday registered a case with respect to the grant of financial assistance under the Centre’s Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN) scheme, saying the threshold income to claim benefit was prima facie “extremely low”.

A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan issued notice to the central government on the petition registered as a PIL on a recommendation by the high court’s PIL committee following a letter by a Delhi resident, Suresh Kumar Raghav, who sought funds to undergo kidney transplant for the second time.

The court appointed lawyer Ankit Jain as the amicus curiae and said the condition that a patient shall be entitled to assistance only once for treatment of kidney transplant was unreasonable.

Suresh Kumar Raghav sought financial assistance of around Rs 9 lakh under the umbrella scheme for kidney transplant for the second time on account of a chronic kidney disease.

The court noted that he earlier received assistance of around Rs 6 lakh under RAN for a transplant that failed in April 2023 and he was informed that under the scheme, such assistance was given only one time and he did not meet the eligibility criteria.

“Issue notice to Union of India, AIIMS and Suresh Kumar Raghav,” the bench, also comprising Justice Manmeet P S Arora said.

“Under the new umbrella scheme of RAN, the threshold of (monthly) income for benefit is Rs 1571 for rural and Rs 1605 for urban areas. The annual income of applicant is Rs 96,000. The court is of prima facie view that the threshold limit is extremely low,” the court observed.

The matter would be heard next on July 4.