HC asks activist Sheela Barse to study malnutrition deaths

The Bombay high court has allowed noted social activist Sheela Barse to intervene in the matter pertaining to malnutrition deaths in Maharashtra and asked the state government to study her recommendations to tackle the situation in tribal areas on a war footing.

Chief Justice D S Bhandari and Justice D Y Chandrachud allowed Barse's application on Wednesday while hearing a bunch of petitions alleging malnutrition deaths in Vidarbha as well as in northern Maharashtra and seeking directions to the state to take urgent preventive measures.

Earlier, the court had also suo motu taken note of newspapers reports and converted them into a petition while clubbing it with other petitions on the same issue.

Adjourning the hearing to September 20, the court also asked Barse to study the issue further and submit her findings and recommendations to the state-appointed committee.

Advocate General Vijay Thorat suggested that Barse be included in the state-appointed committee to look into tribal deaths and suggest ways to tackle the situation. However, Barse turned down the suggestion and said she would render help to the government as and when needed.