IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

(EXTAORDINARY CIVIL ORIGNAL JURISDICTION)

C.M. No 15238 of 2020

IN

Writ Petition (Civil) No. 2161 of 2017

IN THE MATTER OF:

Delhi Rozi-Roti Adhikar Abhiyan …Applicants

AND IN THE MATTER OF:

Delhi Rozi-Roti Adhikar Abhiyan …Petitioners

Versus

Union of India & Ors. …Respondents

INDEX

N.D.O.H: 17.08.2020

SI Description Page
Nos.
1. Common Rejoinder Affidavit to Reply 1-8
Affidavits filed by Respondent No.2 on
04.08.2020 and 11.08.2020
2. ANNEXURE-R-1 9 - 18
A true copy of the RTI Application dt.
15.06.2020, response thereto and the order
on Appeal against that response.
3. ANNEXURE-R-2 19 - 21
 A true typed copy of the Indian Express
report dt. 13.08.2020
4. ANNEXURE-R-3 22
Proof of service to all respondents by E-
mail.

Note: All parties have been served by e-mail

FILED BY: -

PRASANNA S
ADVOCATE FOR THE PETITIONER
B-22 (Basement),Defence Colony,
New Delhi – 110024
Mobile – 87503 50762
Filed on:- 14.08.2020
Place: - New Delhi
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
(EXTAORDINARY CIVIL ORIGNAL JURISDICTION)
C.M. No 15238 of 2020
IN
Writ Petition (Civil) No. 2161 of 2017

IN THE MATTER OF:

Delhi Rozi-Roti Adhikar Abhiyan …Applicants

AND IN THE MATTER OF:

Delhi Rozi-Roti Adhikar Abhiyan …Petitioners
Versus
Union of India & Anr. …Respondents

COMMON REJOINDER AFFIDAVIT ON BEHALF OF PETITIONER TO

THE REPLY AFFIDAVITS FILED BY RESPONDENT NO.2 ON
04.08.2020 AND 11.08.2020 RESPECTIVELY

I, Amrita Johri, aged about 34 years, daughter of Lalit Mohan Johri,

resident of C-31, Panchsheel Enclave, Delhi, do hereby solemnly affirm
as under that:
1. The Deponent is a member of the organization who is the Petitioner
in the captioned writ petition and the Applicant in the
accompanying Application and as such aware of the facts and
circumstances of the case and is as such competent to swear this
Affidavit.
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2. The captioned Application was filed inter alia to bring to the notice
of this Hon’ble Court the discontinuance of distribution of dry
rations to Non-PDS beneficiaries and the closure of hunger relief
centers – both being not only arbitrary and unwarranted decisions
in the midst of a pandemic induced food security crisis but also
being contrary to the various directions passed by this Hon’ble
Court in CM. No. 10409 of 2020 in the captioned Writ Petition.

3. The background of captioned Application, the orders passed in CM.

No. 10409 of 2020 are set out in detail in the captioned Application
and are not repeated herein for brevity. The same may be read as
having been reiterated herein.

4. The captioned Application was heard by this Hon’ble Court on

17.07.2020 and was pleased to issue notice to the Respondent No.2
GNCTD in respect of Prayers (a) through (c) reproduced
hereinbelow.
a) A direction to the Respondent No.2 to resume its scheme of providing
dry rations under the Mukhya Mantri Corona Sahayta Yojna (MMCSY)
scheme, or any other scheme designed for that purpose to all those who
applied for e-coupons under the said scheme and other poor and needy
persons, until further orders of this Hon’ble Court.

b) A direction to the Respondent No.2 to continue accepting E-coupon

applications and continue operating kiosks and helpdesks facilitating
such applications for the purpose of receiving benefits for all residents
not already covered under the regular PDS scheme under the National
Food Security Act, 2013, until further orders of this Hon’ble Court.

c) A direction to the Respondent No.2 to ensure resumption of hunger

relief centers providing hot cooked meals in hunger relief centers;
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5. The Respondent No.2 has filed Replies dt. 04.08.2020 and
11.08.2020. They correspond to the contentions of the Food
Department (in respect of Prayers (a) and (b) above) and the
Revenue Departments (in respect of Prayer (c) above) respectively.

6. The Petitioner seeks leave to place on record this short Common

Rejoinder is filed in response to the substance of the contentions of
GNCTD in both the Replies, and undertakes to file a para-wise
rejoinder if so directed by this Hon’ble Court.

E-COUPONS & DRY RATION DISTRIBUTIONS TO NON-PDS

BENEFICIARIES
7. The Reply filed by the Food & Civil Supplies Department of GNCTD
pertains to prayers (a) and (b) in the captioned Application i.e.
distribution of dry rations to people that do not have ration cards
and are not covered under the PDS scheme operated under the
provisions of the National Food Security Act, 2013.

8. The captioned Application had averred that the system put in place
to cater to Non-PDS beneficiaries has in effect been discontinued
and that no provision through any scheme or notification has been
put in place for providing rations to those without ration cards for
the month of June or afterward. The Respondent therein has denied
to having discontinued the distribution.

9. As recorded the reply of the Food Department, in light of the severe

economic distress caused due to the sudden lockdown to contain
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spread of Covid-19, the GNCTD under Mukhya Mantri Corona
Sahayta Yojna (MMCSY) announced the e-coupon scheme to ensure
food security for those people who did not possess ration cards and
were therefore outside the purview of the National Food Security
Act (the Public Distribution System covers 71.3 lakh people or 37%
population of Delhi). The e-coupon scheme was initially to cover
only 10 lakh people and was for one time ration entitlement of 5
kgs grain per person. Subsequently in light of the orders of this
Court dt. April 27, 2020, the cap of 10 lakhs was removed and the
scheme was extended for another month.

10. It is reiterated herein that the said scheme has not been
extended beyond second phase of distribution which commenced
in May 2020. No subsequent notifications/orders regarding third
round of distribution have been put out by the Delhi government.
Even the Reply filed by the Food & Civil Supplies Department does
not disclose or place on record any notification or circular
extending the said scheme for distribution of rations
corresponding to beyond the month of May.

11. It is submitted that the people whose e-coupons were generated

in phase 1 distribution have got ration only twice since the
commencement of the scheme (corresponding to the months of
April and May) while for others they have gotten ration once
(corresponding to the month of May only).
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12. As per submission recorded by this Hon’ble Court in its order dt.
May 28, 2020, GNCTD received 54 lakhs applications for e-coupons
from people not covered under the PDS. However, as Phase 3
distribution has not been announced and it appears that the e-
coupon scheme for those without ration cards has in effect now
been discontinued, people without ration cards are not being
provided any manner of food security by the Respondent
government.

13. It is reiterated herein that a declaration of National Disaster

under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 is still in force and that
no measure of normalcy has returned in the daily lives of the
residents of Delhi – particularly among the poor and marginalised
who had been dependent on the said scheme for the alleviation of
the hunger in their families and the realization of their right to food.
In its reply, the Food & Civil Supplies Department while admitting
that no provision has been made for phase three distribution, has
claimed that the registration for e-coupons is still open and
Department is supplying to those who are applying. However, it is
submitted that this appears to be a completely ad-hoc exercise in
the absence of any stated policy or scheme.

14. Further, the Respondent has failed to substantiate the claim

with any confirmed figures regarding applications received and
how many e-coupons have been successfully generated. The same
is also not available on its portal. Further, the respondent has not
even disclosed these figures under the RTI Act wherein total
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number of people who applied for e-coupon scheme, number of
applications which were successful and number of applications still
pending were sought. A copy of the RTI application, dated
15.6.2020 and the subsequent replies and proceeding is annexed
herewith and marked as ANNEXURE R-1.
15. It is also pertinent to invite attention to the fact that the Atma
Nirbhar Scheme under which central government was providing
rations to about 7 Lakh additional people in the capital not covered
under the Public Distribution System, was only for a period of 2
months i.e. May and June 2020 and the entitlement has not been
further extended. Due to delays in distribution merely the date of
distribution has been extended until 31.08.2020.

PROVISION OF FREE COOKED MEALS THROUGH HUNGER

RELIEF CENTERS
16. The Reply filed by the Revenue Department of GNCTD pertains
to prayer (c) in the captioned Application i.e. the provision of free
cooked meals in the Hunger Relief Centers which were operational
during the COVID-19 lockdown but have since been discontinued.

17. The short Affidavit filed on behalf of Revenue Department,

GNCTD admits to the contention in the captioned Application that
as on date there is no provision for providing cooked food through
shelters and hunger relief centres.

18. The Reply states that the provision for cooked food was shut
down due to less demand as economic activity resumed and
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migrant workers shifting back to their native place. In response to
this, it is submitted that there is still large scale economic distress
being faced by people in Delhi. Migrant workers are in fact now
returning to the capital city due to paucity of income generation
opportunities in their hometowns and villages and there is no
provision to provide even a basic modicum of food security to such
persons as most of them do not possess ration cards.

19. The Respondent has stated that those seeking shelter can use
the night shelters provided by DUSIB. However, even at these
shelters, there is no provision of food and people have to rely on
private charitable initiatives or religious places in the vicinity for
securing meals. Even though economic activity is slowly resuming
it has in no measure resumed to the pre-lockdown levels and many
persons are unemployed or employed at a fraction of the wages
they were earning earlier due to the slowdown in commercial and
industrial activities. For instance, a report in the Indian Express
titled “Slowly, migrants return to Delhi and NCR: ‘There’s no work
back home,” illustrates, albeit anecdotally, the continuing distress
among those who are returning as well as those that have stayed
back in Delhi.
A true copy of that report dt. 13.08.2020 is annexed herewith and
marked as ANNEXURE-R-2.
The Petitioner urges this Hon’ble Court to take notice of the fact of
the economic distress not having eased, certainly not to the pre-
pandemic levels. The Petitioner seeks leave to file additional
documents in support of this averment if so directed.
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20. It is therefore submitted that all the measures that were put in
place during the COVID-19 lockdown, i.e. provision of dry rations
to people without ration cards in compliance with the orders of this
Hon’ble Court and the continued operation of the Hunger Relief
Centers, ought to remain in place atleast so long as the declaration
of the disaster under the Disaster Management Authority 2005 Act
subsists.

DEPONENT
Verification:
Verified at New Delhi on this the 14th day of August, 2020 that the
contents of para 1 through para 20 of the above affidavit are true and
correct to my knowledge and belief, no part of it is false and nothing
material has been concealed therefrom.

DEPONENT
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ANNEXURE-R-2

indianexpress.com

Slowly, migrants return to Delhi and

NCR: ‘There’s no work back home’

Written by Ananya Tiwari | New Delhi | Updated: August 13, 2020

3:39:34 am

At Anand Vihar ISBT. Praveen Khanna

For a month after the lockdown was announced in March,

Sandeep Vishwakarma (22) stayed back in Haryana’s Karnal,
where he worked. But all jobs had dried up. In April, he and other
construction labourers left for Panipat on foot. Now he’s back.

On Wednesday, he reached Delhi after an almost 11-hour bus ride

and headed to Rewari on a vehicle arranged by a contractor.
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Leaving his family behind at Sitapur, he now hopes to land a job at
a factory at Rewari. “I was earning Rs 10,500 per month at Karnal.
We are at Rewari now, and a company still has to hire me. Then I
will know how much I will earn. There is no work at home and I
need the money,” he said.

At the Anand Vihar ISBT, a steady stream of migrant workers from

Uttar Pradesh are arriving in Delhi to resume work in NCR, around
three months after the lockdown was eased.

Many left Delhi right after the lockdown on March 24 on foot.

Among them was Giriraj Singh (28), who used to work at an
aluminium plant in Nangloi. He left for Badaun on foot, hitching a
ride on the way. Now, he is returning to work at the same plant for
Rs 12,000 per month — what he was earning earlier for eight
hours of work. “I have two children below the age of six… I need to
earn. I am scared of the virus, but there is nothing I can do about
it,” he said.

Avneesh Sagar (19) and his brother Patiraj Sagar (18), from
Jalalabad in Shahjahanpur, arrived Wednesday at the bus station
to head back to their job at a utensil-making factory at Bawana for
the same wage of Rs 14,000 per month. Avneesh said, “Both of us
left before the lockdown as work had stopped. The factory has
called us back now. There is no work at home, even the harvest
season is over.”

Several neighbourhoods in Delhi, such as urban villages and

unauthorised colonies which were primarily populated by migrant
workers, are still largely empty as homeowners wait for tenants to
return.

Honey Bharti (32), who runs a clothing store and owns a four-
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storey house at Khichripur village near Patparganj, used to rent
eight rooms to tenants for Rs 3,000-4,000 per month. The tenants,
who hailed from UP and used to work as carpenters, auto and
e-rickshaw drivers, factory workers, street vendors, are yet to
return.

He said, “Even after lockdown was partially lifted, an auto-driver,

for example, was earning only Rs 300-350 per day. This is barely
anything as he has to pay rent to the rickshaw owner. He said he
can’t pay rent and went home.”

Himanshu (29), who runs a general store and rents out 10 rooms
for Rs 2,000-2,500 per month at Ghondli Village in East Delhi’s
Krishna Nagar, said, “Only one family from Bihar stayed back. The
rest are ready to return if factories call them. But their employers
keep saying there is no work, don’t come now.”

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