Madras High Court issues notice to itself in PIL suggesting use of A4 size paper, e-filing to reduce paper wastage

The Madras High Court on Monday sought response from its administrative side on a public interest litigation petition suggesting various measures including the promotion of e-filing and the use of A4 size paper, to tackle the colossal wastage of paper involved in the filing case documents (Mr Jittin S v. Registrar General and 2 ors). .A Bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy besides issuing notice to the Registrar General and two registrars - Registrar (Administration) and the Registrar (Judicial), also impleaded the Union Department of Justice in the matter..The plea was moved by a lawyer, advocate Jittin S, who pointed out that the filing of new cases involves taking multiple copies of the petitions, typed set of papers, affidavits, compliance documents etc. and that huge volumes of paper have to be used before a case is numbered. .In this regard, he highlighted that corrections are often required to be made when cases are filed, for which purpose the High Court's Registrar would return the submitted documents for compliance. This process would, in turn, involve the consumption of more paper and more wastage, it was noted..On a broader note, the petitioner submitted that as per data sourced from Indian paper manufacturers, the pulp and paper industry in India is facing a shortage of raw materials with the demand for pulpable wood expected to touch 15 million tonnes per annum by 2024-25. This is linked to deforestation and high water consumption, it is observed. Further, the paper production process also involves the secretion of effluents, leading to water pollution, it was noted. .According to a High Court report of 2019, in 2018 there were 8.9 cases filed per 1 lakh population in Tamil Nadu, the petition further stated. Given the voluminous amount of paper likely to have been used for the same, the petitioner submitted that it is necessary to put an eco-friendly system in place..In this backdrop, the petitioner also noted that the Supreme Court had issued notifications in 2020 for the adoption of A4 size paper when it comes to court filings and communications. .Filings in Supreme Court to be made in A4 size from April 1 onwards [Read Circular].By its March 2020 notification, the Supreme Court had also stated that all communications from the Registry would be sent by e-mail to the concerned Advocate-on-Record (AoR) followed by the SMS alert, so that the practice of sending communications through hard copy could be discontinued. Inter alia, the 2020 notification had also restricted the volumes of document copies to be filed. .Earlier, on January 14, 2020, the Supreme Court Registrar General had intimated that all internal communications at all levels would be in A4 size paper with both sides printed, it is further noted by the petitioner. .The petitioner also urged the High Court to emulate e-filing adopted by the Supreme Court. Since the Supreme Court is implementing e-filing in full, the High Court has also been requested to do the same when it comes to all matters before the Madras High Court and subordinate courts. .The petitioner pointed out that while the e-filing system is fully functional at the High Court, even when litigants send filings through e-mail, they are later instructed to file hard copies. .The petitioner suggested that a system be put in place so that no hard copies are required to be filed before correction of defects and compliance is carried out digitally. Thereafter, a hard copy can be sought for the judges, the petitioner suggested. .The suggestions made by the petitioner include:.That the Court upload a format online for a sample draft with the font, line spacing, size, margins etc. to be used uniformly on A4 size paper and with double print;All communications to advocates and between advocates and opposite parties should be done only through e-mail followed by SMS alerts;Only e-filing should be required in filing of new cases and a hard copy shall be printed only after curing the defects and full compliance;That the Court Continuously stream training videos concerning e-filing in designated rooms or on YouTube;That disposed or dismissed case bundles be recycled after scanning and storing the e-repository..The petitioner further noted that the High Courts of Calcutta, Karnataka, Kerala, Sikkim, Tripura, and Allahabad have already adopted measures to conserve the environment..In view of these submissions, the petitioner urged the Court to pass directions to adopt innovative measures to reduce paper consumption..There is fundamental duty on every Indian citizen Article 51(1)(g) of the Constitution to protect and improve the natural environment, the petitioner added. Society should look into sustaining the environment for future generations and protecting life and dignity, including the right to breathe clean air, it was observed. .The petition was moved before the High Court after a July 3 representation on the issue to the High Court's Registrar's yielded no response. .The petition has been filed through advocates Ajay Francis Inigo Loyola and Priya Annie Zacheriah. Advocate Ajay Francis appeared for the petitioner in the matter today.