At least six judges of the Supreme Court are suspected to have been affected by the H1N1 virus, prompting Chief Justice S.A. Bobde to order the health ministry to take immediate steps to prevent an outbreak in the country’s highest court.

The Chief Justice stepped in after another judge, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, took up the matter with him, official sources said.

Justice Chandrachud, they said, pointed out that the viral flu — also known as swine flu — had affected at least six judges and many more would be infected if immediate steps were not taken.

The court has 33 judges against a maximum possible strength of 34.

Two of the affected judges, Justices N.V. Ramana and Sanjiv Khanna, had earlier been seen attending the court wearing masks.

Both were seen in the court on Tuesday, though Justice Ramana didn’t have a mask on.

The nine-judge constitution bench, dealing with a batch of petitions related to the entry of women devotees into the Sabarimala temple and other religious places, could not sit the whole of last week as some of the judges on the bench were suspected to be down with the flu.

Some two-judge benches too have not assembled since last week because of the H1N1 flu, a seasonal infection that usually occurs every year, the peak months being January to March and July to September.

Justice Bobde on Tuesday held consultations with the president of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), Dushyant Dave, on vaccinating advocates as the court teems with thousands of lawyers every day.

The Central Government Health Scheme’s First Aid Post on the court’s premises has been strengthened, among the measures that have been taken.

All the judges have been provided treatment according to protocol, the officials said, and so have their families.

The six judges suspected to be down with the flu had been kept in home isolation last week. Of them, three have resumed duty while the rest continue to be under home isolation or observation and are recovering, the sources confirmed.

The court rooms and residences of judges are being sanitised.

The ministry of health and family welfare will on Wednesday conduct an H1N1 sensitisation workshop for lawyers and other staff at the Bar Council of India.

Health authorities have suggested preventive measures such as frequent washing of hands, keeping away from infected persons and avoiding crowded places.