The Bombay High Court has directed the Maharashtra government to take strict action against hospitals and medical centres that deny admission to deserving patients merely over lack of a positive RT-PCR Covid-19 test report.

In an order passed on Wednesday, a bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice G S Kulkarni said the state authorities must act against hospitals and medical centres that violated guidelines issued by the state and Centre last month on admitting suspected Covid-19 patients.