Lok Sabha Question No. 299 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-07-21
Subject: Use of Technology in Judicial Institutions
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Kotha Prabhakar  Reddy

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

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 299 TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 21 st  JULY, 2023

Use of Technology in judicial Institutions

## 299. SHRI KOTHA PRABHAKAR REDDY:

Will the MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE be pleased to state :

- (a) whether the Government has worked out/ taken steps for the use of technology  to  reach  out  to  citizens  and  for  the  evolution  of  judicial institutions  highlighting  the  importance  of  technology  to  ensure judicial access to all citizens, particularly those in remote areas, as it has  ample  power  to  transform  the  way  justice  is  delivered  in  India quickly and also to ensure court proceedings are transparent, efficient, and accessible to all, regardless of their location and if so, the details thereof; and
- (b) whether the Government has also stressed the importance of evolving judicial institutions and the goal to continually improve and modernise  the  judiciary,  rather  than  waiting  for  crisis  such  as  the COVID-19 pandemic like situations to forced changes and if so, the details thereof and progress made therein?

## ANSWER

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

(a) &  (b):As  part  of  the  National  eGovernance  Plan,  the  eCourts  Mission Mode  Project  is  under  implementation  for  ICT  development  of  the  Indian Judiciary based on the 'National Policy and Action Plan for Implementation of  Information  and  Communication  Technology  in  the  Indian  Judiciary'. eCourts  project  is  being  implemented  in  association  with  e-Committee Supreme Court of India and Department of Justice. Phase I of the project was implemented  between  2011-2015.  Phase  II  of  the  project  extended  from 2015-23.The Government has taken the following e-initiatives to make justice accessible and available for all: -

- i. Under the Wide Area Network (WAN) Project, connectivity has been provided  to  99.4%  (2976  out  of  earmarked  2994)  of  total  Court Complexes across India with 10 Mbps to 100 Mbps bandwidth speed.
- ii. National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) is a database of orders, judgments, and cases, created as an online platform under the eCourts Project. It provides  information  relating  to  judicial  proceedings/decisions  of  all computerized district  and  subordinate courts of the  country. Litigants can access case status information in respect of over 23.34 crore cases and more than 22.21 crore orders / judgments (as on 03.07.2023).
- iii. Case Information Software (CIS) based on customized Free and OpenSource Software (FOSS) has been developed.  Currently CIS National Core Version 3.2 is being implemented in District Courts and the CIS National Core Version 1.0 is being implemented for the High Courts.
- iv. A new software patch and court user manual for  COVID-19 management  has  also  been  developed.    This  tool  will  help  in  smart scheduling of cases thereby enabling judicial officers to retain urgent cases and adjourn cases not urgent on cause list.   A user manual for this patch has also been issued for the ease of the stakeholders.

- v. As part of eCourts project, 7 platforms have been created to provide real  time  information  on  case  status,  cause  lists,  judgements  etc.  to lawyers/Litigants  through  SMS  Push  and  Pull  (2,00,000  SMS  sent daily),  Email  (2,50,000  sent  daily),  multilingual  and  tactile  eCourts services Portal (35 lakh hits daily), JSC (Judicial Service centres) and Info Kiosks.  In addition, Electronic Case Management Tools (ECMT) have  been  created  with  Mobile  App  for  lawyers  (total  1.88  cr. downloads  till  30 th June  2023)  and  JustIS  app  for  judges  (19,164 downloads till 30 th June 2023).
- vi. India  has  emerged  as  a  global  leader  in  conducting  court  hearing through Video Conferencing. The District & Subordinate courts heard 1,98,67,081 cases while the High Courts heard 78,69,708cases (totalling 2.77 cr) till 30.06.2023 using video conferencing system. The Hon'ble Supreme Court of India held 4,82,941 hearings through video conferencing  till  15.05.2023.  VC  facilities  have  also  been  enabled between 3240 court complexes and corresponding 1272 jails. Funds for 2506 VC cabins and VC equipment for 14,443 courtrooms have also been released. 1500 VC licenses have been procured to promote virtual hearings.
- vii. Live Streaming of court proceedings has been started in High Courts of Gujarat, Gauhati, Orissa, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Patna, Madhya Pradesh & Hon'ble Supreme Court of India thus allowing media and other interested persons to join the proceedings.
- viii. 22 Virtual Courts in 18 States/UTs have been operationalized to handle traffic challan cases. More than 3.26 crore cases have been handled by 22  virtual  courts  and  in  more  than 39  lakhs  (39,16,405)  cases  online fine of more than Rs. 419.89 crores has been realized till 30.06.2023.
- ix. New e-filing system (version 3.0) has been rolled out for the electronic filing of legal papers with upgraded features.  Draft eFiling rules have

been formulated and circulated to the High Courts for adoption. A total of  19  High  Courts  have  adopted  the  model  rules  of  e-Filing  as  on 30.06.2023.

- x. e-Filing  of  cases  requires  the  option  for  electronic  payment  of  fees which  includes  court  fees,  fines  and  penalties  which  are  directly payable  to  the  Consolidated  Fund.  A  total  of  20  High  Courts  have implemented  e-payments  in  their  respective  jurisdictions.  The  Court Fees Act has been amended in 22 High Courts till 30.06.2022.
- xi. To bridge the digital divide, 819 eSewa Kendras have been rolled out with the intention of facilitating the lawyer or litigant who needs any kind of assistance ranging from information to facilitation and eFiling.It also assists the litigants in accessing online e-Courts services and acts as a saviour for those who cannot afford the technology or are located  in  far-flung  areas.  It  also  aids  to  addresses  the  challenges caused by illiteracy among citizens at large. It will provide benefits in saving  time,  avoidance  of  exertion,  travelling  long  distances,  and saving cost by offering facilities of e-filing of cases across the country, to conduct the hearing virtually, scanning, accessing e-Courts services etc.
- xii. In  addition  to  eSewaKendras,  as  part  of  the  DISHA  (Designing Innovative  Solutions  for  Holistic  Access  to  Justice)    scheme    the Government  of  India  has  launched  Tele  Law  program  since  2017, which provides an effective and reliable e-interface platform connecting the needy and disadvantaged sections seeking legal advice and consultation with panel lawyers via video conferencing, telephone and  chat  facilities  available  at  the  Common  Service  Centres  (CSCs) situated in Gram Panchayat and through Tele-Law mobile App.

- xiii. National  Service  and  Tracking  of  Electronic  Processes  (NSTEP)  has been launched for technology enabled process serving and issuing of summons. It has currently been implemented in 28 States/ UTs.
- xiv. A new 'Judgment Search' portal has been started with features such as search by Bench, Case Type, Case Number, Year, Petitioner/ Respondent  Name,  Judge  Name,  Act,  Section,  Decision:  From  Date, To Date and Full Text Search. This facility is being provided free of cost to all.

The eCourts Phase II formally came to an end on 31 st  March 2023.For further expanding the reach of justice through digital revolution, the Government  of  India, in  the  Union  Budget  2023-2024,  announced  Rs.  7000 crores  for  Phase-III  of  e-Courts  project.  Based  on  Detailed  Project  Report approved  by  eCommittee,  Supreme  Court  of  India,  the  Expenditure  Finance Committee in its meeting held on 23.02.2023 has recommended eCourts Phase III with a total outlay of Rs.7210 Crore. Further, the Empowered Technology Group chaired by the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Prime Minister in its meeting held on 21.06.2023 has also recommended the eCourts Phase III for approval.

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