Left to Right : Swapna Sagarika Mishra, Deputy Director, Badri Narayan Nanda, Additional Director, Justice Debabrata Dash, Chairman, Bidyut Kumar Mishra, Director and Manas Ranjan Padhan, Assistant Director

The Odisha Judicial Academy (in short, hereinafter, OJA), an integral part of the High Court of Orissa, is the nodal organisation entrusted with the responsibility of providing training to Judicial Officers, Staff along with all others who are part of the justice delivery mechanism in the State of Odisha. OJA strives to bring out the excellence in the Judicial Officers of the State and optimise their performance through various training programmes.

OJA has its own annual training calendar duly prepared under the guidance of the Hon’ble Odisha Judicial Academy & Training Committee, High Court of Orissa and approved by National Judicial Academy. The training activities are conducted as per the above calendar which include induction training programmes for newly recruited Civil Judges (Junior Division) and District Judges directed recruited from Bar. Further, OJA conducts foundation training programmes for officers in the cadre of District Judge appointed through usual Promotion and Limited Competitive Examination (UP & LCE). Most importantly, OJA conducts refresher training programmes for in service judicial officers in three stages i.e. Early Career Training (JMFCs, SDJMs, Civil Judges(Jr. Divn.), Mid- Career Training (Civil Judge (Sr. Divn.), CJMs, etc.) and Advanced Career Training (ADJs, DJs, Special Court Judges etc.). It also conducts training programmes to sensitise Public Prosecutors, members of the Juvenile Justice mechanism, Police Officers, POCSO mechanism, Court Managers, Staff of the District Courts and the Hon’ble High Court of Orissa etc. Special programmes are also conducted by OJA from time to time with approval of Hon’ble Committee. The training modules of OJA not only take care of the legal requirements but also aim at physical and mental well-being of the trainees.

In order to decentralise OJA and to take the training activities to the grassroot level, five Regional Judicial Academies have been established at Angul, Balasore, Ganjam at Berhampur, Sambalpur and Koraput at Jeypore for cluster districts of the State of Odisha on 13th May 2023, which are actively and effectively conducting training programmes at regional level, without wastage of valuable judicial man-days. The Court Staff, Advocates, Advocate’s clerk and Judicial Officers posted in remote areas are getting benefitted from such Regional Judicial Academies.

With the introduction of new technologies, the training programmes of OJA have also been suitably modified to incorporate subjects such as ICT, Paperless Courts, Vulnerable Witness Deposition Centre Rules, Video Conferencing Rules etc. That apart, germane topics such as – gender equality, issues of persons with disabilities, environment protection, access to justice etc. are also included in the training calendar of OJA. Furthermore, kind instruction of the Hon’ble Apex Court in the cases of Aureliano Fernandes Vrs. State of Goa & Others on Sexual Harassment, Gohar Mohammed Vs. UPSRTC and Others – CA 9322 / 2022 on MACT, Satender Kumar Antil Vs. CBI, (2022) 10 SCC 51 and Siddharth Vs. State of UP, (2022) 1 SCC 676 on arrest, detention, bail etc. have been incorporated in the training modules as well as training course materials of OJA for imparting effective training.

During the year 2023, OJA organised and conducted, one (1) induction programme, two (2) foundation training programmes, twenty-seven (27) Refresher programmes, several Hands-on Training programmes, ICT & E-Courts training programmes and many other special programmes and workshops. In the entire year, OJA trained almost all the Judicial Officers of the State with 2193 individual training exposures, trained 1529 Staff and host of other stake holders.

1. Induction Programmes

The Induction training of the 50 Civil Judges (Jr. Division) of 2021 commenced on 7th January 2023 with the Oath taking ceremony, wherein Dr. Justice S. Muralidhar, Hon’ble the Chief Justice, High Court of Orissa andPatron-in- Chief, OJA administered Oath to the trainee officers in presence of the Hon’ble Judges of High Court of Orissa. The training activities continued throughout the year.

2. Foundation Training

Institutional and practical training sessions were conducted for the 19 Judicial Officers in the cadre of District Judges appointed through Usual Promotion & Limited Competitive Examination (UP&LCE) (1st Batch of 2023) by using the Online platform from 9th January 2023 to 10th February 2023. Similarly, the institutional training for the 10 Judicial Officers (UP&LCE) (second batch of 2023) was conducted through virtual mode from 1st December 2023 to 21st December 2023.

3. Refresher Training Programme for Judicial Officer

Twenty-Three (23) Refresher training programmes for Judicial Officers of different cadres in the district judiciary were conducted during year 2023. All the programmes were of two-day duration during which various important topics of law were covered by erudite resource person benefitting 489 numbers of Judicial Officers.

4. Refresher Training Programme for Staff

During year 2023, OJA conducted four (4) numbers of Refresher training programmes for staffs of District Courts as well as High Court as per the approved training calendar.

5. Hands-on and ICT & e-Courts Training Programmes

During the year 2023, 9 nos. of Hands-on Training programmes for Judicial Officers in conducting Virtual hearing, 13 nos. of Handson Training programmes on “Paperless Court”, 12 nos. of Hands-on Training programmes on “Examination of vulnerable witness” and 3 nos. of ICT & e Courts Training Programmes and 3 nos. of ICT & Hands-on Training on various e services were conducted by the Academy. These programmes benefitted a good number of Advocates, Advocate’s clerks, court staff and almost all the Judicial Officers of the State.

6. Achievements of the Regional Judicial Academies

From the date of inauguration of five Regional Judicial Academies on 13th May 2023 till 31st December, 2023, a total of 40 refresher training programmes, 55 Hands on training programmes and 25 ICT & Hands-on training programmes on various e-services for judicial officers and staff have been conducted, in which 976 judicial officers and 1360 Staff have been benefitted.

7. Special Programmes organised at Odisha Judicial Academy during the year 2023

a. On 7th January, 2023, a programme was organized at OJA with a view to facilitate the students to have basic knowledge on the working of our judicial system of our State and in the said programme Hon’ble Dr. Justice Sanjeeb Kumar Panigrahi, Judge, High Court of Orissa along with two distinguished lawyers of Hon’ble High Court of Orissa interacted with the 40 students of Kendriya Vidyalaya, No.1, Bhubaneswar accompanied by their 3 Teachers / Staff.

b. On 3rd February, 2023, Hon’ble Dr. Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Chief Justice, Supreme Court of India, virtually inaugurated the “Virtual High Courts” in 10 Districts of Odisha. A function was organised at OJA for the above purpose and Hon’ble the Chief Justice and Hon’ble Judges of the High Court of Orissa attended the same.

c. From 10th February 2023 to 13th February 2023, the District Judges’ Conference was organized at the Odisha Judicial Academy by the Hon’ble High Court of Orissa, Cuttack.

d. On 19th February 2023, a special programme was organised by the High Court of Orissa at Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of Odisha Judicial Academy on the occasion of 75th year Celebration of High Court of Orissa Establishment. In this function, Hon’ble the Chief Justice and other companion Hon’ble Judges of the High Court of Orissa were present. The employees were performed various programmes like song, Odissi dance, dance, and drama (Makadama) in this programme.

e. On 31st March, 2023, a felicitation programme was conducted by Hon’ble High Court of Orissa at Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of Odisha Judicial Academy for the Legal Assistants of the High Court of Orissa, who have completed 30 years of their profession. The Legal Assistants were felicitated by Dr. Justice S. Muralidhar, Chief Justice and Hon’ble Dr. Justice B.R. Sarangi and Hon’ble Sri Justice S. Talapatra, Judges, High Court of Orissa. Hon’ble Judges of High Court Orissa and other dignitaries also graced the occasion. Sri B.K. Rout, President and Sri D.K. Mohanty, Secretary, Legal Assistants Association were present.

f. On 15th April, 2023, Grand Finale of the State Level Law Quiz function was held at the Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of the Odisha Judicial Academy. In this function, Hon’ble the Chief Justice and other companion Hon’ble Judges of the Hon’ble High Court of Orissa were present. Mr. Raghav Chakravarthy, Co-Founder & CEO of Qshala conducted the Quiz programme.

g. On 28th April, 2023, a felicitation programme was organized for the former and present Advocate General,Lawyers having completed 50 years of practice and “Lawyer of the year 2022” awards were presented in presence of Hon’ble Mr. Justice Dipak Misra, Former Chief Justice of India, Dr. Justice S. Muralidhar, Chief Justice and Hon’ble Justice Sri S.K. Sahoo, Hon’ble Justice Sri V. Narasingh, Judge, High Court of Orissa and Hon’ble companion judges of High Court of Orissa. Sri Arvind P. Datar, Sr. Advocate, Supreme Court of India, Sri A.K. Parija, Advocate General, OHC and Sri Dharanidhar Nayak, President, Orissa High Court Bar Association were present, among others.

h. On 6th & 7th May, 2023, a National Conference on “Digitisation, Paperless Courts and e-Initiatives” was conducted by the High Court of Orissa at Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of Odisha Judicial Academy. Hon’ble Dr. Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Chief Justice of India, Hon’ble Sri Justice A.S. Bopanna, Hon’ble Sri Justice Krishna Murari, Hon’ble Sri Justice Rajesh Brindal, Judges, Supreme Court of India, Dr. Justice S. Muralidhar, Chief Justice and Hon’ble companion Judges of High Court of Orissa, Hon’ble Judges of other High Courts including the Chairmen and Members of IT Committee of the concerned High Courts, Members of e Committee, Supreme Court of India, NIC and 89 numbers of participants including Central Project Coordinators of other High Courts of the Country, Nodal Officers of digitization and District Judges & Chairpersons of District Courts Computer Committee of all District Courts of Odisha participated in the programme, which was inaugurated by the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India.

i. On 10th May, 2023, celebration of “one year of Centre for Judicial Archieves” was conducted by High Court of Orissa at Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of Odisha Judicial Academy. In this function Dr. Justice S. Muralidhar, Chief Justice, Hon’ble Justice D. Dash, Hon’ble Dr. Justice S.K. Panigrahi, Judges, High Court of Orissa and Hon’ble companion Judges were present. Chief speaker Prof (Dr.) Prabhu Prasad Mohapatra, Department of History, Delhi University and Dr. Lalatendu Das Mohapatra, Directorcum- OSD, Centre for Judicial Archieves were present.

j. On 13th May, 2023, five newly established Regional Judicial Academies at Angul, Balasore, Ganjam at Berhampur, Koraput at Jeypore and Sambalpur were inaugurated in a grand function held at OJA by Hon’ble Mr. Justice Suryakanta, Judge, Supreme Court of India in the august presence of Dr. Justice S. Muralidhar, Chief Justice, Orissa High Court & Patron-in-Chief, Odisha Judicial Academy, Hon’ble Dr. Justice B.R. Sarangi, Judge, High Court of Orissa & Chairman, Odisha Judicial Academy & Training Committee, Hon’ble Members of Odisha Judicial Academy & Training Committee and Hon’ble companion Judges of High Court of Orissa.

k. On 19th May 2023, the Annual Cultural Function, 2023 of the Orissa High Court Cultural Society of the High Court of Orissa was held at the Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of OJA and the Odia Drama “Full Tension” was staged by the employees of the High Court.

l. 40 hours internsive Mediation training programme was organised at Regional Judicial Academy, Koraput at Jeypore from 28th June 2023 to 2nd July 2023 for the Advocates of the cluster districts.

m. On 3rd June, 2023, a one-day workshop on various provisions of Environmental Laws & Harmful Impacts of Pollution and Environmental Degradation was organized by Odisha Judicial Academy in collaboration with Odisha State Pollution Control Board and Odisha State Legal Services Authority. In the said programme, 72 numbers of participants participated including DLSA secretaries of the District Courts of Odisha, Environmental Scientists and Environmental Engineers were participated.

n. On 2nd July, 2023, as part of celebration of the 75th year of the High Court of Orissa, a State Level Law Quiz programme was conducted for the Judicial Officers at Odisha Judicial Academy.

o. From 14th to 16th July, 2023, a National Conference on the topic “Preservation, Archival and Judicial History” was conducted in presence of Hon’ble Mr. Justice S. R. Bhat, Judge, Supreme Court of India &Dr. Justice S. Muralidhar, Former Chief Justice, High Court of Orissa.

p. On 28th July, 2023, a Plantation Programme was organized by Odisha Judicial Academy in its premises, which was attended by Hon’ble the Chief Justice and Hon’ble Judges of High Court of Orissa / on 28th July, 2023, a Thanks Giving Ceremony was held in the Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium Hall of the Odisha Judicial Academy by the High Court of Orissa.

q. On 26th August, 2023, a State Level Consultation Programme on “Children in Conflict with Law: Prevention, Restorative Justice and Diversion and Alternatives to Detention” organized jointly by the Department of W & CD, Govt. of Odisha and UNICEF under the aegis of the Hon’ble Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court of Orissa at Odisha Judicial Academy. Apart from Judges of the High Court of Orissa, Judicial Officers and other stakeholders of JJ(CPC) mechanism participated in the consultation programme.

r. On 17th September, 2023, a judicial colloquium was conducted at Odisha Judicial Academy on the subject “Administration of Justice: The District Judiciary”, at Odisha Judicial Academy for the District Judges and CJMs of the State.

s. On 23rd September, 2023, State-level Judicial Colloquium organized by Odisha Judicial Academy in collaboration with Ministry of Home Affairs and International Justice Mission on the topic “Human Trafficking” wherein Judicial Officers, Public Prosecutors and Police Officers participated.

t. On 24th September, 2023, a Lecture Programme organized by Odisha Judicial Academy on the topic “Life of a Judge” and conducted by Hon’ble Mr. Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel, Former Judge, Supreme Court of India for the Officers in the cadre of Civil Judge (Junior Division) in the State.

u. From 15th to 17th November, 2023, three days Residential Capacity Building special training programme was organized for the Empanelled Mediators of the State and District Consumer Redressal Commissions by Odisha Judicial Academy in collaboration with Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Department, Govt. of Odisha. In this programme, 57 numbers of Empanelled Mediators were present from different districts of the State.

v. On 26th November, 2023, Constitution Day was observed by the officers and staff of the Odisha Judicial Academy.

w. On 5th December, 2023, a programme was organised for the release of the training “Handbook 2023-24” of OJA (includes RJAs) and the book on Judicial Code of Conduct “Anushasan” at Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of Odisha Judicial Academy, Cuttack. The books were released by Hon’ble the Acting Chief Justice-cum-Patronin- Chief and all the Hon’ble Judges of the High Court of Orissa graced the occasion. The Officers of the Registry, High Court of Orissa, Officers of the OSLSA and the trainee Civil Judges (Junior Division) of 2021 batch were participated physically and all the Judicial Officers of the State joined the programme through virtual mode.

x. On 17th December, 2023, a programme for release of Judicial Calendar, 2024 was organized by the High Court of Orissa at OJA, in which top 12 student Artists, whose paintings were selected to be displayed in the Judicial Calendar, 2024 were felicitated.

y. Departmental Examination, 2023 was held at OJA on 22nd & 23rd December, 2023 for the Civil Judges (Jr. Division). 49 Civil Judges (Jr. Division) appeared in the Departmental Examination as per the provisions of OSJS and OJS (amendment) Rules, 2007.