30.32 Million Court Cases Pending

New Delhi, May 3 (UNI) As many as 30,329,700 cases are pending in courts across India-- a problem authorities expect to tackle through such steps as appointing more judges and using information and communication technology.

''Government has taken steps,'' Law and Justice Minister Hans Raj Bhardwaj was stated today to have told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply.

Mr Bhardwaj said, ''as per available information, 39,700 cases in the Supreme Court, 39.9 lakh cases in the High Courts and 2.63 crore cases in the Subordinate courts were pending four months ago-- on December 31.'' He said that to reduce pendency in the courts, the government has taken steps to increase the judge strength ''from time to time'' and extended Fast Track Courts till March 31, 2010.

Such measures as grouping of cases involving common question of law and application of information and communication technology in the courts have also been taken, he added.

He also cited the establishment of Central and State Administrative Tribunals, efforts to encourage alternative modes of disposal-- mediation and arbitration-- and plans to set up Gram Nyayalayas in rural areas.

UNI