Dikhyaa Mohanty The Orissa High Court on Monday opened virtual high courts in 10 more districts taking the total to 20 in the state. Odisha has been lauded for pioneering virtual high courts in the country. With 10 more such courts, Odisha has also become the only state to have a high court which is accessible from every district.
The first 10 virtual high courts were inaugurated by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud on February 3 at Sambalpur, Balangir, Rourkela, Bhawanipatna, Jeypore, Berhampur, Bhubaneswar, Puri, Balasore and Bhadrak. An equal number were inaugurated on Monday at – Angul, Dhenkanal, Jagatsinghpur, Jajpur, Kandhamal (Phulbani), Kendrapara, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj (Baripada), Nayagarh and Sundargarh.
Chief Justice S Muralidhar said the virtual high courts will be a huge benefit for the lawyers in the districts as they will be able to appear in the high court. Most importantly it will reduce the cost for the litigants, increase efficiency and assure speedy justice at least in matters that require immediate attention. “These changes for the convenience of the litigant public are indeed an effort to improve access to justice,” the CJ said.
