Supreme Court pulls up Centre for missing deadline on establishing cashless medical treatment scheme for motor accident victims

NEW Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday slammed the Centre regarding delays in establishing a cashless medical treatment scheme for motor accident victims. The court summoned the road transport ministry secretary for clarification. Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan noted non-compliance with their January 8 order."The time granted has expired on March 15, 2025. This is a serious breach and violation of not only orders of this court but a violation of implementing a very beneficial legislation. We direct the secretary, ministry of road transport and highways to appear on video-conferencing and explain why the directions of this court were not complied with," stated the bench.The court observed that senior government officials respond seriously only upon being summoned.Additional solicitor general Vikramjeet Banerjee, representing the Centre, cited "bottle necks" as reasons.The court responded firmly, stating that the legislation was meant to benefit common people and prevent loss of lives due to lack of cashless treatment facilities. They warned of potential contempt proceedings.The secretary was instructed to appear on April 28 for explanation.The court additionally instructed the transport department secretary to provide written directives to district magistrates regarding uploading hidden hit-and-run claims on the GIC portal.On January 8, the court had directed the Centre to create a scheme for cashless treatment during the 'golden hour' as per law.Referencing Section 162(2) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, the government was ordered to implement the scheme by March 14.The Act defines golden hour under Section 2 (12-A) as the crucial one-hour period post-trauma when medical intervention is most effective.The court emphasised that financial and procedural delays often result in fatalities.It highlighted the Centre's statutory obligation under Section 162 to create a cashless treatment scheme, supporting Article 21's right to life guarantee.The law requires insurance companies to provide treatment for accident victims during the golden hour according to the MV Act scheme.Despite being effective from April 1, 2022, the scheme remained unimplemented, necessitating court intervention.The Centre proposed a draft limiting treatment cost to Rs 1.5 lakh for seven days, which the petitioner's counsel deemed inadequate.The GIC was assigned to manage hit-and-run compensation claims and develop a streamlined portal. This portal would facilitate document uploads, notify states of deficiencies, and reduce processing delays. As of July 31, 2024, 921 hit-and-run compensation claims remained pending due to documentation issues. The court directed GIC to resolve these matters.GIC was instructed to complete portal development and report compliance by March 14, 2025.