The Kerala High Court has directed the state government to explain the steps taken to operationalise a newly built transit home for foreign nationals in Alappuzha, including the status of funding required to open the facility. The court has asked the home secretary to submit an affidavit before the next hearing on November 20.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice V M Syam Kumar issued the direction while considering a suo motu petition linked to the premature release of eligible prisoners. The proceedings also included a report submitted by the Kerala State Legal Services Authority (KeLSA) on overcrowding at an existing transit home in Kollam.
The Kollam facility is used for the temporary accommodation of foreign nationals who have entered India illegally or who have been released on bail subject to restrictions on their movement. The court was informed that a new transit home had already been constructed in Alappuzha to address the accommodation requirement.
According to the submissions before the court, staff had also been appointed for the Alappuzha facility. However, the transit home had not become operational because financial sanction was still required. The Social Justice Department had sought funds for the facility, but its request remained pending, the court was informed.
The court subsequently directed the home secretary to examine the matter and take steps to make the facility operational at the earliest. It also sought details of the action taken, including information on the allocation of funds requested by the Social Justice Department.
The proceedings highlight the administrative chain required to bring a completed public facility into use. Although the Alappuzha transit home has reportedly been constructed and staff appointed, its operation remains dependent on financial approval and coordination between the departments concerned.
The facility is intended to provide temporary accommodation for foreign nationals whose movement is restricted following their release on bail or whose legal and administrative processes are pending. Until the new facility becomes operational, the court has been examining concerns connected with the use of the Kollam transit home, including the issue of overcrowding raised in the KeLSA report.
The court’s direction requires the state to place a formal account of the implementation process on record rather than provide only an assurance that the facility will be opened. The affidavit is expected to set out the steps already taken, the funding position and the measures proposed to operationalise the Alappuzha transit home.
The matter has been adjourned to November 20, when the court is scheduled to consider the state’s response and the affidavit submitted by the home secretary.
