Experts stress the need for an over-arching central law to deal with epidemics
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is getting heaps of praise as he tackles the coronavirus pandemic in his state, despite being at loggerheads with US President Donald Trump. In India, there still exists a conundrum over the division of powers between the Centre and states to fight the pandemic. Several experts want an over-arching central law to deal with similar situations in a quasi-federal democracy where fragmented laws don’t demarcate the roles of the two.
Around three years back, the ministry of health put up for discussion the draft Public Health (Prevention, Control and Management of Epidemics, Bio-terrorism and Disasters) Bill, 2017. The draft Bill mentioned the role and responsibilities of the Centre and states in a medical emergency. The Bill, however, never saw the light of the day. According to Article 246 of the Constitution, matters related to public order and health are mentioned in the state list. To deal with the fast-spreading pandemic, the central government took recourse to the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 (ED Act), and the Disaster Management Act, 2005 (DM Act). Subsequently, it announced a countrywide lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus, using provisions in the DM Act.
As the virus quickly spread across the country, many experts called for the imposition of an emergency, which could give the Centre wide-ranging powers. However, such a measure would have faced implementation challenges. “The Constitution does not directly mention health emergencies of the kind India is currently experiencing. However, once central legislation becomes applicable, Article 256 applies. That provision says that states must comply with central laws, and the Centre can issue directions to demand compliance,” says Shubhankar Dam, professor of public law and governance, University of Portsmouth School of Law, UK…Read More
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