50 More Paperless Courts Inaugurated In 23 Districts Of Odisha

Cuttack: Chief Justice S Muralidhar of Orissa High Court on Monday inaugurated 50 paperless courts in 23 districts of Odisha.

With this, the number of paperless courts in the district judiciary of the state has reached 84. On September 17, 2022, Chief Justice of India had inaugurated 34 paperless courts in the state. In the valedictory ceremony of the National Conference on Digitisation, e-Initiatives and Paperless Courts held at Cuttack in May, 2023, the Chief Justice on behalf of the High Court of Orissa had pledged to open 100 paperless courts in the state in three months.

Inaugurating the second phase of paperless courts through digital mode, Chief Justice Muralidhar said  it is yet another milestone crossed by the Odisha judiciary and this is a work in progress. Next 50 paperless courts will be made functional in a month’s time.

“COVID pandemic caused acceleration of use of technology in judiciary and technology would change the way judicial officers approach their work. Working in paperless court makes it much easier for the Judge to access the relevant documents in digital case records which is far more difficult in voluminous physical records and it leaves a positive impact on the mindset of the Judge,” he said.

Citing the problem of digital divide among the lawyers, the Chief Justice said free bookmarked softcopies of the paper books supplied by the lawyers would be provided to them which would be a great incentive for the younger
lawyers to get on to the e-mode.

He emphasised on the impact of paperless court on the reconfiguration of space and the whole architecture of the court. All measures of digitization, e-filing and paperless courts are to make access to justice more affordable, more efficient and more effective, he added.

Speaking on the occasion, Justice S Talapatra, Chairman, Artificial Intelligence and Information Technology Committee of the High Court said the judiciary believes in the exercise of ethical expansion of technology in judiciary and stressed upon the need of using technology for benefit of the poor.

He congratulated the judicial officers who have come forward to make their courts paperless. Odisha Judiciary has been harnessing technology to make justice accessible to the common citizens and this has received accolades from various quarters, he said.

Justice Sanjeeb Kumar Panigrahi presented the vote of thanks and said while the western countries are still struggling to make paperless courts functional, the vision and guidance of Chief Justice Muralidhar has made Odisha achieve this milestone even in district level.

Advocate General Ashok Kumar Parija, Chief Executive Officer, OCAC, members of the Artificial Intelligence and Information Technology Committee and the Judges of the High Court were also present.