Relatives of patients killed by Covid will have to be paid ex gratia under a central law, the Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday after brushing aside the Narendra Modi government’s contention that such payouts are not mandatory.

But the court declined to fix the amount at Rs 4 lakh each, which the petitioners had sought on the basis of central guidelines issued in 2015 for disaster victims’ survivors. The court asked the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to decide the size of the payment within six weeks.

At least 3.98 lakh people in the country have succumbed to Covid so far but the Centre has been stonewalling payment of ex gratia — meant to tide over immediate exigencies — by splitting semantic hairs, insisting that the word “shall” in a section of the Disaster Management Act should be read as “may”. The contention did not cut ice with the court.

The apex court directed the NDMA to frame within six weeks uniform guidelines for payment of the Covid ex gratia to the relatives.

A special bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan and M.R. Shah said the NDMA could fix a reasonable amount while keeping in mind the funds and resources available with the country.

The court directed the government to simplify the procedure for issuing death certificates in Covid cases to avoid harassment of the ex gratia claimants.

In this context, the alleged attempts by some state governments to tamper with the Covid casualty figures assumes an additional dimension that has a direct bearing on the affected families.

The appropriate authority is directed to issue simplified guidelines for issuance of death certificates and other official documents stating the exact cause, that is “death due to Covid-19”, to the families of the deceased, the court said.

Such guidelines may also provide for remedy and corrections in the certificates if the families are not satisfied with the cause of death, the bench added.

Usually, payments under the Disaster Management Act are given by the Centre. The State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) — funded 75 per cent by the Centre and the rest by the respective general category state government — is also tapped. Once the NDMA frames the guidelines, it will be clear from where the Covid ex gratia payouts will be made.

The court said the “national authority” (the NDMA) had failed to perform its statutory duty. The court pointed out that the government had in a letter dated March 14, 2020, declared the Covid-19 pandemic as a “notified disaster”, which falls within the purview of the Disaster Management Act.

The court did not agree with the government’s submission that the word “shall” in Section 12 of the Disaster Management Act that deals with payment of ex gratia should be read as “may”.

“To construe the word ‘shall’ as ‘may’ and as directory/discretionary, the very object and purpose of the Act will be defeated. The word ‘shall’ used twice in Section 12 significantly imposes a duty cast upon the National Authority to issue guidelines for the minimum standards of relief, which shall include ex gratia assistance on account of loss of life as also assistance on account of damage to houses and for restoration of means of livelihood,” the court said.

The court, however, agreed with the Centre’s stand that the plea for a directive to pay a minimum of Rs 4 lakh to the kin of each of the Covid patients who died could not be mandated as the government had various other related financial commitments. The government listed among these commitments free vaccines, anti-viral drugs and foodgrains amid the pandemic, besides a stimulus to the Covid-battered economy.

The court was dealing with a batch of petitions filed by advocates Reepak Kansal and Gaurav Kumar Bansal and a couple of other interveners pleading for a minimum ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh to every family that has lost a member to Covid.

Justice Shah said: “It cannot be disputed that these (pandemic) deaths have affected families from all classes…. Many have lost the sole bread-earner.

“However, at the same time… the impact and effect of the present pandemic/disaster would be different from the other disasters/natural disasters for which ex gratia assistance is provided. There shall not be any justification to provide for the same/similar amount by way of ex gratia assistance as provided in the case of other disasters/natural disaster, i.e. Rs 4 lakh.”

Justice Shah added: “No state or country has unlimited resources. That is why it only announces the financial relief/packages to the extent it is possible.”

The court said the Centre should take appropriate steps on the recommendations made by the Finance Commission in its 15th report on providing social security to certain targeted groups such as health workers, post-mortem workers, cremation and burial site worker. The stakeholders and experts will have to be consulted.