Cycle-Tracks Not Priority When State Struggling To Provide Basic Needs Like Housing, Hospitals : Supreme Court Refuses To Entertain PIL

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to entertain a petition seeking direction to have separate cycling tracks in all cities, questioning the feasibility of such a direction when the governments were finding it difficult to even provide basic amenities like shelter and hospitals to the people. The petitioner's counsel then cited the example of Pune, saying that it would be a city familiar to Justice Oka, and said that despite various plans contemplating cycle tracks, nothing has materialised. Today, there is a reported judgment of the Bombay High Court saying that 26% of the Police force stay in slums, because they have no houses," Justice Oka said. And now we are daydreaming, when people don't have basic facilities of housing and medicines, we are daydreaming by saying that every city should have cycle tracks," Justice Oka said. "As far as construction of cycle tracks are concerned, all major cities in India, without exception, have issue of providing affordable houses, issue of providing basic facilities like medical treatment, education at a reasonable cost.