Arbitration may help cut backlog of pending cases: Justice Kurian Joseph

SHIMLA: The Himachal Pradesh Judicial Academy should be developed as an international centre on arbitration and mediation, Supreme Court Justice Kurian Joseph said here on Saturday. The judge was addressing the state's judicial officials after inaugurating an administrative block, a staff hostel and staff quarters under the first phase of construction at the HPJA in Ghandal, about 30 km from here.
On the sidelines of the event, Justice Joseph said alternative ways of dispute resolution like arbitration and mediation could play a vital role in reducing the backlog of pending cases in the country.He also advocated setting up new courts and appointment of more judges to deal with the pendency of cases.
Nearly 2.75 crore cases are pending in courts across the country, according to the National Judicial Data Grid.
Justice Joseph said the HPJA was ideally located for its development as an international centre on arbitration, mediation and conciliation. Arbitration is a growing branch of dispute redressal, he added.
Union minister for electronics and information technology Ravi Shankar Prasad will lay the foundation stone of information technology (IT) Part at Mehli near Shimla on Monday. Announcing this here on Saturday, Himachal Pradesh minister for agriculture and IT Dr Ram Lal Markanda said the park would be constructed at a cost of Rs 29 crore.
Around 60 bighas of land is available at Mehli where this IT park would be set up with the help of Software Technology Park of India, the minister said. “Three hundred professionals would get employment at this IT park,” he said.
“Development of IT parks would help stem the migration of students to other states as employment opportunities in IT sector would be available to them here,” he added. Another IT park would be developed in Gaggal area of Kangra district, where 36 bigha land is available, he said.