Govt working on improving disposal of pending cases: President

New Delhi, Feb 21 (PTI) Noting that the governmentaccords high importance to improve the delivery of justice toall, President Pratibha Patil today said a set of proposalsexpected to be finalised shortly would help reduce delays indisposal of pending cases.

"My government attaches high priority to improving thedelivery of justice and reducing delays in the disposal ofcases," Patil said addressing both Houses of Parliament.

Talking about the National Mission for Delivery ofJustice and Legal Reforms which aims at timely delivery ofjustice to all, she said, "This should result inre-engineering of procedures, improving of human resources inthis sector and leveraging of information technology."

Details of the Mission would be shortly finalised, thePresident said.

The pendency of cases in High Courts has increasedduring the last three years and the government now aims toreduce it from an average of 15 years at present to an averageof 3 years.

The President also referred to the Judicial Standards andAccountability Bill which has been introduced in Parliament.

The bill, she said, is "intended to enhance theaccountability of the judiciary, thereby improving its imageand efficiency."

The Bill provides a mechanism for enquiring intocomplaints against the Judges of the Supreme Court and theHigh Courts, requires them to declare their assets andliabilities and lays down judicial standards.

It will address the growing concerns regarding the needto ensure greater accountability of the higher judiciary bybringing in more transparency and would further strengthen thecredibility and independence of the judiciary.