Lok Sabha Question No. 1865 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-08-02
Subject: Fast Track Special Court
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Shri Parbhubhai Nagarbhai Vasava, Shri Balya Mama Suresh Gopinath Mhatre, Shri Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, Shri Shankar Lalwani

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1865 ANSWERED ON - 02/08/2024

## FAST TRACK SPECIAL COURT

1865 . SHRI PARBHUBHAI NAGARBHAI VASAVA:

SHRI BALYA MAMA SURESH GOPINATH MHATRE:

SHRI RAMVIR SINGH BIDHURI:

SHRI SHANKAR LALWANI:

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

- (a) the  steps  taken  by  the  Government  to  implement  the  Fast  Track  Courts Scheme; and
- (b) the details of the major achievements and outcomes of the said scheme?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE; AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (SHRI ARJUN RAM MEGHWAL)

- (a)  and  (b): Pursuant  to  the  Criminal  Law  Amendment  Act,  2018,  the  Central Government has been implementing a Centrally Sponsored Scheme for setting up of Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs), including exclusive POCSO Courts since October, 2019  for  expeditious  trial  and  disposal  of  pending  cases  pertaining  to  Rape  and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, in a time-bound manner.

The Scheme was initially implemented for one year, which was extended upto March, 2023.  The Scheme has now been extended till 31.03.2026, at an outlay of Rs. 1952.23 cr. with Rs. 1207.24 cr. as Central Share to be incurred from Nirbhaya Fund. The funds are released on CSS pattern (60:40, 90:10) to cover the salaries of 1 Judicial

Officer  along  with  7  support  Staff  and  a  Flexi  Grant  for  meeting  the  day-to-day expenses.

As  per  the  information  received  from  the  High  Courts  up  to  May,  2024,  755 FTSCs  including  410  exclusive  POCSO  (e-POCSO)  Courts  are  functional  in  30 States/UTs across the country, which have disposed of over 2,53,000 cases. The Statewise details of number of functional Fast Track Special Courts along with the number of cases disposed of as on 31.05.2024 is at Annexure.

The  establishment  of  Fast  Track  Special  Courts  demonstrates  the  unwavering commitment  of  the  Government  towards  women  security,  combating  sexual  and gender-based  violence,  reducing  the  backlog  of  pending  cases  related  to  Rape  & POCSO Act, and providing enhanced access to justice for survivors of sexual crimes. With  professional  and  experienced  judges  and  support  staff  specialized  in  handling sensitive sexual offense cases, these courts ensure consistent and expert-guided legal proceedings  offering  victims  of  sexual  offences  swift  resolution  in  mitigating  the trauma and distress  and  enabling  them  to  move  forward.  Fast  Track  Special  Courts have  notably  adopted  the  approach  of  setting  up  Vulnerable  Witness  Deposition Centres within the courts to facilitate the victims and to make the courts into ChildFriendly Courts for providing crucial support for a compassionate legal system.

***

## Annexure as referred to in Reply to the Lok Sabha UnStarred Question No. 1865 for 02 nd  August, 2024

State/UT-wise details of number of functional Fast Track Special Courts along with the number of cases disposed as of May, 2024

|         |                  | Functional Courts               | Functional Courts   | Cumulative Disposal since the inception of the Scheme   | Cumulative Disposal since the inception of the Scheme   | Cumulative Disposal since the inception of the Scheme   |
|---------|------------------|---------------------------------|---------------------|---------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------|
| Sl. No. | State/UT         | FTSCs including exclusive POCSO | exclusive POCSO     | FTSCs                                                   | exclusive POCSO                                         | Total                                                   |
| 1       | Andhra Pradesh   | 16                              | 16                  | 0                                                       | 4899                                                    | 4899                                                    |
| 2       | Assam            | 17                              | 17                  | 0                                                       | 5893                                                    | 5893                                                    |
| 3       | Bihar            | 46                              | 46                  | 0                                                       | 11798                                                   | 11798                                                   |
| 4       | Chandigarh       | 1                               | 0                   | 265                                                     | 0                                                       | 265                                                     |
| 5       | Chhattisgarh     | 15                              | 11                  | 924                                                     | 4044                                                    | 4968                                                    |
| 6       | Delhi            | 16                              | 11                  | 555                                                     | 1262                                                    | 1817                                                    |
| 7       | Goa              | 1                               | 0                   | 32                                                      | 34                                                      | 66                                                      |
| 8       | Gujarat          | 35                              | 24                  | 2263                                                    | 9793                                                    | 12056                                                   |
| 9       | Haryana          | 16                              | 12                  | 1572                                                    | 4675                                                    | 6247                                                    |
| 10      | Himachal Pradesh | 6                               | 3                   | 416                                                     | 1126                                                    | 1542                                                    |
| 11      | J&K              | 4                               | 2                   | 91                                                      | 101                                                     | 192                                                     |
| 12      | Jharkhand        | 22                              | 16                  | 2279                                                    | 4537                                                    | 6816                                                    |
| 13      | Karnataka        | 31                              | 17                  | 3740                                                    | 6657                                                    | 10397                                                   |
| 14      | Kerala           | 55                              | 14                  | 13530                                                   | 6123                                                    | 19653                                                   |
| 15      | Madhya Pradesh   | 67                              | 57                  | 3894                                                    | 22456                                                   | 26350                                                   |
| 16      | Maharashtra      | 14                              | 7                   | 7258                                                    | 11530                                                   | 18788                                                   |
| 17      | Manipur          | 2                               | 0                   | 146                                                     | 0                                                       | 146                                                     |
| 18      | Meghalaya        | 5                               | 5                   | 0                                                       | 462                                                     | 462                                                     |
| 19      | Mizoram          | 3                               | 1                   | 148                                                     | 55                                                      | 203                                                     |
| 20      | Nagaland         | 1                               | 0                   | 61                                                      | 3                                                       | 64                                                      |
| 21      | Odisha           | 44                              | 23                  | 4992                                                    | 9521                                                    | 14513                                                   |
| 22      | Puducherry*      | 1                               | 1                   | 0                                                       | 83                                                      | 83                                                      |
| 23      | Punjab           | 12                              | 3                   | 2055                                                    | 2061                                                    | 4116                                                    |
| 24      | Rajasthan        | 45                              | 30                  | 4502                                                    | 10138                                                   | 14640                                                   |
| 25      | Tamil Nadu       | 14                              | 14                  | 0                                                       | 7225                                                    | 7225                                                    |
| 26      | Telangana        | 36                              | 0                   | 5993                                                    | 2731                                                    | 8724                                                    |
| 27      | Tripura          | 3                               | 1                   | 203                                                     | 186                                                     | 389                                                     |
| 28      | Uttarakhand      | 4                               | 0                   | 1614                                                    | 0                                                       | 1614                                                    |
| 29      | Uttar Pradesh    | 218                             | 74                  | 34091                                                   | 34998                                                   | 69089                                                   |
| 30      | West Bengal      | 5                               | 5                   | 0                                                       | 106                                                     | 106                                                     |
|         | TOTAL            | 755                             | 410                 | 90624                                                   | 162497                                                  | 253121                                                  |