On Friday at the Odisha Judicial Academy in Cuttack, the Orissa High Court celebrated the “First Anniversary” of the Record Room Digitization Center. Justice D. Y. Chandrachud, Chairperson of the Apex Court’s E-Committee, participated virtually in the event as the “Chief Guest.” Judges from the Orissa High Court, including Chief Justice S. Muralidhar, were also present, as were the members of the RRDC Committee, which was presided over by Justice Debabrata Dash.
Justice Chandrachud expressed his great delight at being given the opportunity to speak at the event because, ironically, it was he who launched the Center on September 11 of last year. According to him, the Orissa High Court has been really at the “forefront” of carrying out decisions made by the Supreme Court of India’s E-Committee. He clearly recalled his remarks from the previous year at the opening of the RRDC, the introduction of the e-filing stations, and the opening of the Orissa High Court’s first paperless court. He praised the Orissa High Court for being a “exception” and for working tirelessly to institutionalize digitization. He expressed his appreciation with the strict adherence to the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) on digitization.
Justice Chandrachud outlined three crucial characteristics of digitization To begin with, the Court is an organisation for records. The direction is to keep Records of the court for ever. It is difficult to preserve documents in hard copy while storing them. He stated: “I recently seen pictures of the appalling condition of the digitization of court documents nationwide is consequently a useful tool to help us preserve the documents. In a sense, digitization For scholars, heritage value places all The documents are being digitised, starting with the Sadar Dewani Adalat from the 1800s, including the Orissa High Court in a unique position in the history of our country.”
Second, he claimed that digitization would encourage efficiency, accessibility, and Better knowledge and information flow management.
Justice Chandrachud “Green Bench”
Afterward, he spoke on his recent choice to change his Constitution Bench into a “Green Bench.” He said, “Just a couple of days ago my colleagues on a Constitution Bench and I decided that the Bench should be a ‘Green Bench,’ operating in a paperless manner. We have offered to hold training sessions for counsel so that the transition from a Court scattered with papers to e-files would be smooth. I noticed a few reluctant faces among the Bar. I was able to relate to them because as humans, we tend to fear the unknown. We are frequently satisfied with the known. Using George Bernard Shaw as an example He said, the key for us is truly to alter our attitudes. He remarked, “Progress is impossible without change and those who cannot change their minds, cannot change anything.” We can change ourselves and the world around us when we change our ideas, after all.
He praised in agreement with Chief Justice Muralidhar. the State of Odisha’s Government, which increased the Orissa High Court’s initiatives would receive full backing. Finally, he expressed his congratulations to the Chief Justice Muralidhar, the Orissa High Court Judges, and the entire RRDC team on the significant anniversary of the first a centre. He really hoped that the initiative would be able to start a meaningful dialogue between the Bar and the Bench on the need to update and alter the current justice delivery system.
“Before I close, I must tell you that what I have seen when I have come to the project site last year and what I have seen now, has set a seed of an idea in my own mind that possibly we can use this not just for the Orissa High Court but the Supreme Court as well,” he said in his closing remarks.
