To check the menace of acid attack,the Supreme Court Thursday directed that this crime be made a non-bailable offence. It also ordered that acid should not be sold to minors. A Bench led by Justice R M Lodha further enhanced the compensation to be paid to such victims to Rs 3 lakh and said that Rs 1 lakh out of this amount must be disbursed within 15 days by the government concerned. The court also obligated the authorities for taking care of all medical needs and rehabilitation of acid attack victims. The directions are an interim mechanism till the Centre and state governments frame uniform rules to regulate the sale of acid,particularly retail sale. It gave them three months to deliberate and come out with a set of rules to be applied across the board. The court said a photo identity card,containing residential address,issued by authorities concerned would be required to buy such substances. The Bench found the compensation to be grossly inadequate and decided to raise the amount from a range of Rs 5,000 to Rs 1.5 lakh to a minimum Rs 3 lakh. It cannot be overlooked that acid attack victims need to undergo a series of plastic surgeries and other corrective treatments. The Solicitor General suggested to us that the compensation amount to be paid by states to acid attack victims must be enhanced to at least Rs 3 lakh. The suggestion is very fair, stated the court order. While Rs 1 lakh will be paid within 15 days of the incident,the court said the balance of Rs 2 lakh should be paid as expeditiously as possible and positively within two months. The court made chief secretaries of the states and administrators of the UTs responsible for ensuring the disbursal of compensation within the stipulated time frame. The bench also asked the central and state governments to work together and make the necessary rules under the Poison Act,1919,to make acid attack a non-bailable offence.
