Make way for techy E-Courts at a cost of Rs 935 crore welcome video-conferencing in Courts and prisons

The PIB reports that the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on September 16, approved an amount of Rs. 935 crore ($207 million) as the revised cost estimate for implementing the E-Courts project in the country.

The PIB reports that the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on September 16, approved an amount of Rs. 935 crore ($207 million) as the revised cost estimate for implementing the E-Courts project in the country. The cost approved earlier for the project in 2007, was Rs. 441.8 crore ($98 million).

E-Courts is one of the Mission Mode projects of e-Governance under the National e-Governance Plan. The revised cost estimate for the project now covers 14,249 Courts in 3,069 Court Complexes as against the coverage of 13,348 Courts in 2,100 Court Complexes approved earlier.

An Empowered Committee will be constituted in the Department of Justice that will be responsible for providing strategic direction and guidance to the project.

The execution of the project will result in transparent flow of information on case-status, verdict of cases, etc. to the litigants and other stakeholders. It will assist in improving case flow and court management. The project also provides for establishment of video conferencing facilities in Courts and prisons to facilitate production of under-trial prisoners.

Bar & Bench previously reported in 2009 about India\'s first \'E-Courts\' inauguration in the month of December. The entire process, end-to-end including filings and the judgment, will be in a digitized format. Justice Ahmad showcased a presentation on providing touch screens to the judges which would display case details pertaining to a case. 

Also, the Indian legal system, including the Courts have adapted to the concept of technology very quickly. The Supreme Court and all High Courts have been computerized and now, the National Informatics Centre focus is on the 400 odd District Courts.