The Judicial Infrastructure Panel submits an interim report to the CJI

Chief Justice of India Justice Surya Kant. File Image | Photo credit: PTI

The committee set up by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant to assess the infrastructure requirements of courts across the country submitted its interim report on Monday (August 31, 2026).

The “Judicial Infrastructure Advisory Committee”, established on 12 May 2026, was tasked with assessing the infrastructural requirements of the Indian judiciary and determining the government support and financial allocation needed to address them.

The committee is chaired by Supreme Court judge Justice Aravind Kumar. Its members include Justice Debangsu Basak of the Calcutta High Court, Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Justice Somasekhar Sundaresan of the Bombay High Court, the Director General of the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) and Chief Secretary of the Supreme Court Bharat Parashar, who serves as a member secretary.

According to a press statement issued by the Supreme Court, the committee prepared a plan to modernize courts across the country and sought to identify the financial support required by the government to address existing infrastructural gaps.

The committee’s mandate included identifying infrastructural constraints facing the justice delivery system and recommending facilities for judges, court staff, lawyers, litigants and visitors.

the e-Courts initiative

It was also tasked with proposing measures for the electronicization of courts under the e-Courts initiative, designing citizen-centric services to make justice delivery more inclusive and recommending steps to bridge the digital divide.

“The committee examined measures to establish modern judicial complexes and improve working conditions for judicial officers and administrative staff to increase the efficiency of the justice delivery system,” the press release said.

The report comes amid concerns about the capacity of the justice system to cope with a growing backlog, with courts continuing to face shortages of courtrooms and staff, inadequate basic equipment and disparities in access to technological infrastructure. These concerns have taken on greater significance following the reduction in the allocation for the Ministry of Law and Justice in the Union Budget 2026-27.

The ministry was allocated ₹4,509.06 crore in the Union Budget 2026–27 compared to ₹4,998.24 crore in the previous year’s budget. The allocation is also significantly below the revised estimate of ₹ 5,189 crore for 2025-26.

Published – 01 Sep 2026 01:20 IST