Lok Sabha Question No. 2607 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-03-10
Subject: E-courts
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Sanjeev Kumar Singari

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE (DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE)

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 2607 TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, THE 10 th  MARCH, 2021

## E-courts

## 2607. DR. SANJEEV KUMAR SINGARI:

## Will the Minister of LAW AND JUSTICE be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether the Government proposes to implement the e-Court project in the country with a view to upgrading information and communication  technology infrastructure in various courts including High Court and District Courts;
- (b)  if so, the details thereof and the funds spent so far;
- (c) the time by which all the courts will be connected with video conferencing;
- (d) the total number of cases pending in Supreme Court of India and High Court of Andhra Pradesh; and
- (e) the steps taken by the Government to clear the pending cases in a time bound manner?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE, COMMUNICATIONS AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## (SHRI RAVI SHANKAR PRASAD)

(a) to (c): Yes, Sir. The Government is implementing the e-Courts Mission Mode  Project  for  Information  and  Communication  Technology  (ICT) enablement  of  District  and  Subordinate  Courts  across  the  country  in

association with the eCommittee of the Supreme Court of India. The eCourts Mission Mode Project Phase-II commenced its implementation in 2015. So far 18,735 District and Subordinate Courts have been computerized and out of  2992  court  complexes  Wide  Area  Network  connectivity  has  been provided to 2939 court complexes.  Against the financial outlay of Rs.1670 crores for eCourts Phase-II, the Government has so far released a sum of Rs. 1548.13 crore for implementation of the project.

With  the  computerization  of  18,735  District  &  Subordinate  Courts and  ICT  enablement  under  the  eCourts  Project  Phase-II,  several  services have  been  provided  to  litigants,  lawyers  and  Judiciary  which  facilitate expeditious delivery of judicial services. eCourts services such as details of case registration, cause list, case status, daily orders & final judgments are available  to  litigants  and  advocates  through  eCourts  web  portal,  Judicial Service Centres eCourts Mobile App, email service, SMS push & SMS pull services and touch screen based Information Kiosks. National Judicial Data Grid  (NJDG)  for  District  &  Subordinate  Courts,  created  as  an  online platform under the Project, provides information relating to judicial proceedings/decisions of computerized district and subordinate courts of the country. Currently, all stakeholders including Judicial Officers can access case status information in respect of over 18.28 crore pending and disposed cases  and  more  than  13.88  crore  orders  /  judgments  pertaining  to  these computerized  courts  on  the  NJDG.  Video  Conferencing  facility  has  been enabled between 3240 court complexes & 1272 corresponding jails.

One  video  conference  equipment  each  has  been  provided  to  all  Court Complexes including Taluk Level Court Complexes in rural areas under the Phase II of the e-Courts Project for virtual hearings.  To further augment the

Video  Conferencing  (VC)  infrastructure,  the  eCommittee  of  the  Supreme Court has approved VC equipment to be provided to 14,443 court rooms in these court complexes for which funds to the tune of Rs.28.88 crore has been released. During the pandemic period the High Courts heard 24,55,139 cases,  while  District  and  Subordinate  courts  heard  51,83,021 cases over Video Conferencing  up to 31/01/2021.

(d):  As on 01.02.2021, 66,072 cases are pending in Hon'ble Supreme Court of India. As per data available on NJDG on 03.03.2021, total cases pending in Andhra Pradesh High Court are 2, 09,993.

(e) :  Disposal of cases pending in courts is within the domain of Judiciary. Though Government has no role in disposal of cases in courts, the Central Government  is  committed  to  speedy  disposal  of  cases  and  reduction  in pendency. The Government has adopted a co-ordinated approach to assist judiciary for phased liquidation of arrears and pendency in judicial systems, through  various  strategic  initiatives  like  improving  the  infrastructure  for courts including computerization, increase in strength of judicial officers/judges and filling up of vacant positions in High Courts/Supreme Court, policy and legislative measures in areas prone to excessive litigation, repeal of outdated and archaic laws, initiatives to fast track special type of cases and emphasis on Alternate Dispute Resolution etc.

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