MP High Court Directs State To Publicise Free Hearse Van Helpline For Dignified Transport Of Deceased

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has directed the State Government to ensure wider publicity of its free hearse van service, MP Mukti Vahan Yojna, while disposing of a public interest litigation. The division bench of Chief Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva and Justice Vinay Saraf disposed of the petition after noting that the State had already established a toll-free helpline number. The bench directed; "In view of the fact that the respondent/State authority has already complied with the prayer made by the petitioner, no further orders are called for in the petition. However, the State is directed to give publicity in respect of the said service by issuing tickers, radio messages and other methods". The petitioner had filed the PIL seeking directions for the State Government to establish and operationalise the dedicated toll-free helpline number for booking and coordinating hearse vans under the Yojna. For context, the Yojana is a welfare scheme that provides free vehicles to transport the bodies of the deceased to their homes with dignity following deaths occurring in the government hospital. The service is available 24/7, specifically relieving poor families of the burden of a lack of transport for funeral rites. The petitioner conteded that despite the availability of these vehicles, the general public largely remained unaware of how to access the service, thereby defeating its intended purposes. The petitioner further sought integration of such a helpline with existing emergency response systems under the National Health Mission and requested wide publicity for the service. The State, during the hearing, informed the court that a dedicated toll-free number had already been established for facilitating access to the hearse van service. Taking note of the State's submissions, the court decided to dispose of the petition. However, the court directed the State to publicise the toll-free number by issuing tickers, radio messages and other methods.Case Title: Rashid Noor Khan v State of MP [WP-46424-2025]For Petitioner: Advocates Akash Choudhary and Aryan UrmaliyaFor State: Government Advocate Anubhav JainClick here to read/download the Order

MP High Court Directs State To Publicise Free Hearse Van Helpline For Dignified Transport Of Deceased

Jayanti Pahwa

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