Dedicated body to cater to judicial infrastructure did not materialise, hope government revisits proposal: CJI NV Ramana

Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana on Saturday bemoaned the lack of progress on his proposal for a dedicated national-level authority towards improving judicial infrastructure..The CJI was speaking at the inaugural function of the 18th All India Legal Services Authorities Meet, and made the remark in the context of responding to the Union Law Minister's comments on judicial pendency."I had proposed creation of independent authorities for development of judicial infrastructure both at national and state level. Unfortunately it did not take off. I hope the Government of India revisits the proposal," he said.In his speech, CJI Ramana stressed that due to the time taken to decide criminal cases, the process has become the punishment."From hasty indiscriminate arrests, to difficulty in obtaining bail, the process leading to the prolonged incarceration of undertrials needs urgent attention. We need a holistic plan of action, to increase the efficiency of the administration of criminal justice," he said.In March 2021, CJI Ramana, who was then the second senior-most judge of the apex court, had urged Central and State governments to come together to create a National Judicial Infrastructure Corporation to cater to the rising need for judicial infrastructure in the country.Such a body will help bring uniformity and standardisation in judicial infrastructure, he had stated then..In July 2021, the Central government approved continuation of the Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) for Development of Infrastructure Facilities for Judiciary for further five years from April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2026 at a total cost of ₹9,000. However, there was no proposal forthcoming towards creation of dedicated authority to cater to judicial infrastructure. CJI Ramana had in February this year lamented the lack of adequate support from the government in improving judicial infrastructure in the country.He had said that mere allocation of funds will not be enough for the same and an institutional mechanism needs to be put in place for coordinating and overseeing improvement of judicial infrastructure.