The petitioner, the widow of an employee of Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Ltd. (MVVNL), approached the Allahabad High Court challenging an order passed by a State Government Committee in October 2022. The Committee had rejected her claim for compensation under the Government Order dated 11 April 2020, which provides ex‑gratia relief to the families of persons who died while performing COVID‑19 related duties. The State’s opposition rested on the argument that the deceased employee did not perform any duty falling within the expression “COVID roktham, upchar and bachao” (containment, treatment and protection from COVID‑19).
Court’s Examination of the Scope of COVID‑Duty
A Division Bench comprising Justice Shekhar B Saraf and Justice Abdhesh Kumar Chaudhary examined the contention that the term COVID‑Duty could not be given a myopic interpretation limited to persons specially assigned to hospital treatment. The Bench referred to its own earlier decision in the case of Pushpa Devi versus State of U.P. (2026 LiveLaw (AB) 362), wherein it had held that employees engaged in essential services such as electricity, water supply, telephone and police, who worked during the pandemic, must be considered to be on COVID‑duty because their discharge of duties helped the State Government contain the spread of the virus and facilitated the treatment and protection of COVID‑19 patients by keeping them in confinement.
The Bench further noted that a co‑ordinate Bench in the matter of Vipin Kashyap had similarly held that a government employee engaged in the supply of essential services, particularly for the smooth functioning of hospitals, faces the challenges of the pandemic and must be included within the definition of a Corona Warrior upon a pragmatic reading of welfare legislation.
Application to the Facts of the Present Case
Applying the aforementioned principles, the Bench observed that the deceased MVVNL employee was regularly engaged in ensuring an uninterrupted supply of electricity to hospitals and oxygen plants where COVID‑19 patients were admitted and treated. Consequently, his work directly contributed to the containment of the pandemic and the treatment of infected persons. The Court held that, on this basis, the employee fell squarely within the ambit of the Government Order of 11 April 2020 and was entitled to be treated as a COVID Warrior.
Rejection of the State’s Opposition and Quashing of the Impugned Order
The Bench rejected the State’s submission that the deceased did not perform any duty within the expression “COVID roktham, upchar and bachao”. It emphasized that a restrictive interpretation would defeat the purpose of the welfare legislation intended to provide relief to families of those who lost their lives while supporting the State’s pandemic response. Accordingly, the impugned order of the State Committee dated October 2022 was quashed.
Direction for Payment of Ex‑Gratia Compensation
Considering that the employee had passed away on 23 April 2021 and the matter had been pending for more than five years, the Court declined to remand the case to the competent authority for fresh consideration. Instead, it directed the concerned authorities to make payment of the ex‑gratia compensation of ₹50 lakh to the petitioner within a period of eight weeks from the date of the order.
Implications of the Judgment
The judgment clarifies that the expression COVID‑Duty encompasses not only frontline medical personnel but also employees of essential services whose work is indispensable for the functioning of healthcare facilities during a public health emergency. By extending the benefit to electricity department staff, the Court has reinforced the legislative intent to provide financial relief to the families of all persons who contributed to the State’s pandemic mitigation efforts. The decision also underscores the judiciary’s reluctance to allow procedural delays to deprive beneficiaries of their statutory entitlements where the factual matrix is clear and the delay has been prolonged.