Lok Sabha Question No. 1034 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-22
Subject: Legal Aid Programme
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Krishna Pal Singh Yadav, Rita Bahuguna Joshi, Shrikant Eknath Shinde, Heena Vijaykumar Gavit, Sujay Radhakrishna Vikhepatil

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1034 TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 22 nd  JULY, 2022

## Legal Aid Programme

## 1034.  DR. KRISHNA PAL SINGH YADAV:

PROF. RITA BAHUGUNA JOSHI:

DR. SHRIKANT EKNATH SHINDE:

DR. HEENA GAVIT:

DR. SUJAY RADHAKRISHNA VIKHE PATIL:

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

- (a) the details of legal aid programmes being implemented by the Government at present along with the funds allocated/utilised for the purpose during the last three years, State/UT-wise and year-wise;
- (b) the total number of persons belonging to various sections of the society who were provided free legal services during the said period, State/UT-wise;
- (c) the steps taken by the Government to ensure easy availability of legal services to the poorest amongst the poor throughout the country; and
- (d) the further steps taken by the Government to establish a nation-wide network for providing free and comprehensive legal services to the weaker sections of the society on uniform basis?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF LAW & JUSTICE (SHRI KIREN RIJIJU)

- (a) and (b) National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) has been constituted under the Legal Services Authorities (LSA) Act, 1987 to provide free and competent legal services to the weaker sections of the society including beneficiaries covered under Section 12 of the Act, to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities, and to organize Lok Adalats to secure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice on the basis of equal opportunities.

For this purpose, the legal services institutions have been setup from the Taluk Court level to the  Supreme  Court.  The  activities/programmes  undertaken  by  Legal  Services  Authorities  include legal  aid  and  advice;  legal  awareness  programmes  ;  legal  services/empowerment  camps  ;  legal services  clinics  ;  legal  literacy  clubs  ;  Lok  Adalats  and  implementation  of  victim  compensation scheme. Funds under Grant-in-Aid are allocated and sanctioned to NALSA by the Government on yearly basis. The details of funds allocated by NALSA to Legal Services Authorities for organizing legal aid programmes during last three years are at Annexure - A. The details regarding number of persons who were provided free legal services during last three years are at Annexure - B. (c)  and (d) To enable equitable access to justice, National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) has launched Legal Services Mobile App on Android and iOS versions to enable easy access to legal aid

to common citizens.

Further,  a  scheme  on  Access  to  Justice  titled  'Designing  Innovative  Solutions  for  Holistic Access  to  Justice  in  India'  has  been  launched  with  aim  to  strengthen  pre-litigation  advice  and consultation through Tele-Law: Reaching the Unreached; ensure  pan - India dispensation framework to deliver Pro Bono legal Services through Nyaya Bandhu (Pro Bono Legal Services) programme; facilitate  disposal  of  15  year  old  pending  cases  at  the  district  level  through  its  Nyaya  Mitra programme  and  to    empower  citizens  through  Pan  India  legal  literacy  and  legal  awareness programme. The Scheme embeds use of technology and developing contextualized IEC (Information, Education and Communication) material in regional / local dialect to supports its intervention and to achieve easy accessibility of legal services to the poor and weakest sections of the society.

****

| Statement showing details of funds allocated (in Rupees) to Legal Services Authorities for organizing legal aid programmes during last three years   | Statement showing details of funds allocated (in Rupees) to Legal Services Authorities for organizing legal aid programmes during last three years   | Statement showing details of funds allocated (in Rupees) to Legal Services Authorities for organizing legal aid programmes during last three years   | Statement showing details of funds allocated (in Rupees) to Legal Services Authorities for organizing legal aid programmes during last three years   | Statement showing details of funds allocated (in Rupees) to Legal Services Authorities for organizing legal aid programmes during last three years   |
|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| S.No.                                                                                                                                                | Name of State/UT Authority                                                                                                                           | 2019-20                                                                                                                                              | 2020-21                                                                                                                                              | 2021-22                                                                                                                                              |
| 1                                                                                                                                                    | Andhra Pradesh                                                                                                                                       | 2,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 3,40,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 5,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 2                                                                                                                                                    | Arunachal Pradesh                                                                                                                                    | 2,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 1,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 1,40,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 3                                                                                                                                                    | Assam                                                                                                                                                | 3,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 3,70,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 6,40,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 4                                                                                                                                                    | Bihar                                                                                                                                                | 4,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 3,70,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 7,60,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 5                                                                                                                                                    | Chhattisgarh                                                                                                                                         | 6,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 3,95,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 5,25,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 6                                                                                                                                                    | Goa                                                                                                                                                  | 0                                                                                                                                                    | 50,00,000                                                                                                                                            | 15,00,000                                                                                                                                            |
| 7                                                                                                                                                    | Gujarat                                                                                                                                              | 3,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 3,45,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 5,75,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 8                                                                                                                                                    | Haryana                                                                                                                                              | 9,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 4,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 6,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 9                                                                                                                                                    | Himachal Pradesh                                                                                                                                     | 4,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 1,85,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 2,45,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 10                                                                                                                                                   | Jammu &Kashmir                                                                                                                                       | 6,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 3,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 4,65,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 11                                                                                                                                                   | Jharkhand                                                                                                                                            | 4,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 4,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 7,35,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 12                                                                                                                                                   | Karnataka                                                                                                                                            | 7,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 6,25,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 7,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 13                                                                                                                                                   | Kerala                                                                                                                                               | 11,00,00,000                                                                                                                                         | 5,25,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 9,90,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 14                                                                                                                                                   | Madhya Pradesh                                                                                                                                       | 4,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 3,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 5,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 15                                                                                                                                                   | Maharashtra                                                                                                                                          | 6,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 6,25,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 8,25,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 16                                                                                                                                                   | Manipur                                                                                                                                              | 4,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 1,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 1,05,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 17                                                                                                                                                   | Meghalaya                                                                                                                                            | 1,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 50,00,000                                                                                                                                            | 50,00,000                                                                                                                                            |
| 18                                                                                                                                                   | Mizoram                                                                                                                                              | 2,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 50,00,000                                                                                                                                            | 1,15,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 19                                                                                                                                                   | Nagaland                                                                                                                                             | 2,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 50,00,000                                                                                                                                            | 1,15,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 20                                                                                                                                                   | Odisha                                                                                                                                               | 6,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 3,25,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 4,25,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 21                                                                                                                                                   | Punjab                                                                                                                                               | 10,00,00,000                                                                                                                                         | 3,25,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 6,40,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 22                                                                                                                                                   | Rajasthan                                                                                                                                            | 6,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 4,55,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 7,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 23                                                                                                                                                   | Sikkim                                                                                                                                               | 2,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 50,00,000                                                                                                                                            | 65,00,000                                                                                                                                            |
| 24                                                                                                                                                   | Tamil Nadu                                                                                                                                           | 5,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 4,20,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 6,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 25                                                                                                                                                   | Telangana                                                                                                                                            | 3,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 3,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 4,10,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 26                                                                                                                                                   | Tripura                                                                                                                                              | 3,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 2,80,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 2,65,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 27                                                                                                                                                   | Uttar Pradesh                                                                                                                                        | 3,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 6,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 6,00,00,000                                                                                                                                          |
| 28                                                                                                                                                   | Uttarakhand                                                                                                                                          |                                                                                                                                                      | 2,50,00,000                                                                                                                                          | 2,55,00,000                                                                                                                                          |

|    |                                        | 2,00,00,000    |                |                |
|----|----------------------------------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
| 29 | West Bengal                            | 9,00,00,000    | 5,20,00,000    | 7,00,00,000    |
| 30 | Andaman &Nicobar Islands               | 0              | 0              | 0              |
| 31 | Chandigarh                             | 1,00,00,000    | 80,00,000      | 55,00,000      |
| 32 | Dadra &Nagar Haveli                    | 0              | 2,50,000       | 0              |
| 33 | Daman &Diu                             | 0              | 2,50,000       | 0              |
| 34 | Delhi                                  | 8,00,00,000    | 5,00,00,000    | 9,30,00,000    |
| 35 | Lakshadweep                            | 0              | 0              | 0              |
| 36 | Puducherry                             | 0              | 10,00,000      | 20,00,000      |
| 37 | Ladakh                                 | 0              | 0              | 65,00,000      |
| 38 | Supreme Court Legal Services Committee | 0              | 1,00,00,000    | 10000000       |
|    | TOTAL                                  | 1,42,00,00,000 | 1,00,00,00,000 | 1,45,30,00,000 |

Statement as referred to in reply to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1034 for answering on 22.07.2022 raised by Dr. Krishna Pal Singh Yadav and Others, MPs - Legal Aid Programme

Statement showing details regarding number of persons who were provided free legal services during last three years

| S. No.   | Name of State/UT Authority   | 2019-20   | 2020-21   | 2021-22   |
|----------|------------------------------|-----------|-----------|-----------|
| 1        | Andaman &Nicobar Islands     | 43        | 65        | 79        |
| 2        | Andhra Pradesh               | 4,396     | 4,474     | 6,371     |
| 3        | Arunachal Pradesh            | 3,932     | 1,984     | 2,657     |
| 4        | Assam                        | 8,002     | 10,027    | 1,10,254  |
| 5        | Bihar                        | 60,139    | 38,653    | 16,89,158 |
| 6        | Chandigarh                   | 2,261     | 1,242     | 1,781     |
| 7        | Chhattisgarh                 | 81,713    | 26,814    | 42,394    |
| 8        | Dadra &Nagar Haveli          | 28        | 10        | 27        |
| 9        | Daman &Diu                   | 0         | 0         | 17        |
| 10       | Delhi                        | 79,458    | 82,131    | 79,055    |
| 11       | Goa                          | 3,006     | 875       | 1,101     |
| 12       | Gujarat                      | 26,887    | 8,302     | 21,953    |
| 13       | Haryana                      | 19,019    | 11,059    | 23,260    |
| 14       | Himachal Pradesh             | 4,368     | 2,083     | 4,806     |
| 15       | Jammu &Kashmir               | 4,961     | 7,675     | 8,870     |
| 16       | Jharkhand                    | 30,530    | 1,31,691  | 6,49,481  |
| 17       | Karnataka                    | 1,45,015  | 23,211    | 32,794    |
| 18       | Kerala                       | 71,058    | 11,242    | 16,895    |
| 19       | Ladakh                       | 0         | 93        | 2,408     |
| 20       | Lakshadweep                  | 0         | 0         | 0         |
| 21       | Madhya Pradesh               | 2,68,351  | 87,843    | 33,43,800 |
| 22       | Maharashtra                  | 24,060    | 12,278    | 22,595    |
| 23       | Manipur                      | 18,257    | 56,635    | 22,651    |
| 24       | Meghalaya                    | 2,914     | 2,131     | 2,346     |
| 25       | Mizoram                      | 9,473     | 1,670     | 3,201     |
| 26       | Nagaland                     | 3,691     | 4,231     | 7,750     |
| 27       | Odisha                       | 8,025     | 6,029     | 8,849     |
| 28       | Puducherry                   | 1,295     | 309       | 884       |
| 29       | Punjab                       | 1,27,829  | 27,096    | 36,404    |
| 30       | Rajasthan                    | 32,413    | 12,274    | 13,833    |
| 31       | Sikkim                       | 928       | 702       | 986       |
| 32       | Tamil Nadu                   | 35,552    | 26,491    | 38,181    |
| 33       | Telangana                    | 15,145    | 3,488     | 6,712     |
| 34       | Tripura                      | 13,595    | 2,156     | 2,671     |
| 35       | Uttar Pradesh                | 60,819    | 3,545     | 1,32,629  |
| 36       | Uttarakhand                  | 3,018     | 2,343     | 3,775     |
| 37       | West Bengal                  | 41,956    | 20,906    | 29,015    |
| Total    | Total                        | 12,12,137 | 6,31,758  | 63,69,643 |