New Delhi, 5 Aug

Delhi High Court on Monday remarked that the recent deaths of 14 inmates in the city government-run Asha Kiran shelter home for the mentally challenged was a "strange coincidence" and directed the social welfare secretary to visit the premises on 6 August and file a report.

Noting that "nearly all" the deceased suffered from tuberculosis, a bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan directed the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) to test the quality of water in the shelter home as well as the condition of water and sewer pipelines and file a report.

The bench, also comprising Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, emphasised that "curative measures" were needed in the matter and said if the shelter home was overcrowded, the authorities would decongest it and move some inmates to another facility.

Fourteen inmates, including a child, died at Asha Kiran in July. The court, hearing a PIL seeking a probe into the deaths, listed the matter for further hearing on 7 August.

Since February, 25 inmates have died at the centre, currently housing 980 "intellectually disabled" persons, including men, women and children, according to official data.