Nyaya Panchayats Bill in pipeline

Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar, the Minister of Panchayati Raj informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply that the Draft Nyaya Panchayats Bill had been forwarded to the State Governments/UTs and the Central Ministries concerned for their comments and had been recast based on their comments and circulated to the Central Ministries concerned and State Governments/UTs.

The objective of the proposed Nyaya Panchayat Bill was to provide a sound institutionalized forum at the grassroots level for alternative dispute resolution through mediation and conciliation with community involvement. The Nyaya Panchayats would aim at resolving disputes before they reach the formal justice system without eliminating the right to go to judicial forum in case of disagreement of any party with the outcome of alternative dispute resolution.

The Draft Bill provides for the establishment of Nyaya Panchayats at the level of each Village Panchayat or cluster of Village Panchayats which are proposed to be constituted through the election of the Nyaya Panchas by people residing in the area to which the jurisdiction of the Nyaya Panchayats extends. It provides for the reservation of women, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to ensure their representation in the Nyaya Panchayats. The Draft Bill defines the civil, criminal and additional jurisdiction of Nyaya Panchayats.

Discussion on The Gram Nyayalays Bill,. 2008, Kerala Law Academy, Trivandrum, 8th Feb., 2009

The Centre for Public Policy Research is organizing a Discussion on "The Gram Nyayalayas Bill, 2008" on 8th February, 2009 at Kerala Law Academy College Campus, Trivandrum at 12:00 noon. 

Prof.(Dr.) Madhava Menon, Member, Law Commission of India will be the keynote speaker for the session.

The discussion will primarily look into the various aspects of the newly passed Gram Nyayalayas Bill, 2008 which seeks to introduce village courts all over India and which would be presided over by Judges called the Nyayadhikaris.

All are welcome.

ADR methods becoming popular in developing countries

Recent reports from various sources prove that developing countries are seriously contemplating the possibility of including ADR methods into their legal reforms , especially for the purpose of reducing backlog of cases. Countries such as Pakistan and Bangladesh are considering the possibility of drafting a separate legislation for the purpose , whereby disputes can be settled at the local level . This blogger community wishes to register its solidarity with such reforms across the globe.

Internships Invited for Alternative Dispute Resolutions

Centre for Public Policy Research
39/717 (A), Rahul Vihar, Karakkattu Road, Cochin, Kerala – 682 016
www.cppr.in
Invites Internship
Under the ‘Taking ADR to Common Man’ project initiated by the Centre

About the Internship: Alternate Dispute Resolution mechanisms have been, for a long time mooted as the solution for the backlog of cases in India. However, it is observed that the benefits of these mechanisms are often confined to the rich and powerful. Centre for Public Policy Research through this research internship intends to measure the efficacy of existing ADR methods and to suggest alternatives so to reach out to the common man. This is an academic effort to understand the struggles behind ‘Taking ADR to Common Man’

Eligibility: Graduate students to retired civil servants
Duration: One Month (full time), two months (part time)
Selection: Based on the interview
Selected areas of research for internship

• Success of Lok Adalats in Kerala
• Success of State initiated mediation centres
• A case study on status and success of Kerala Legal service Authority at various levels
• Role of ADRs in Matrimonial cases and property dispute cases.
• Evaluation of commercial arbitration in Kerala.

Please do send your resume to adr@cppr.in. Please do mention subject line as ‘Internship for ADRs’ while sending emails.
For more details contact us at + 91 92497 55468, + 91 484 6469177

Visit: www.cppradr.blogspot.com