Annual Report 2024

Odisha Judicial Academy, Cuttack

From left to right : Sanjib Panda, Assistant Director, Bidyut Kumar Mishra, Director, Justice K.R. Mohapatra, Chairman, Akankhit Mishra, Additional Director and Swapna Sagaraika Mishra, Deputy Director.

The Odisha Judicial Academy (in short the Academy), which functions under the patronage of the High Court of Orissa, is a premier training institute of the Country. It has over the years helped, not only the newly recruited and in-service judicial officers, in sharpening their legal knowledge and judicial acumen, but also various other stakeholders of the justice delivery system, viz. staff of the High Court & District Courts, Advocates, Public Prosecutors, members of the investigating agencies, advocates’ clerks, etc., in enhancing their proficiency and efficiency. Not only does it work as a center of learning for optimizing the performance and efficiency level of judicial officers across the State by imparting periodical training on the nuances of different facets of law, but training programmes designed and conducted by it for the other stakeholders, such as advocates, investigating officers, advocates’ clerks, members of JJBs etc., also shows its commitment for overall strengthening of the justice delivery system as a whole. It takes on the onerous responsibility of inculcating both judicial and administrative skills and etiquette amongst judicial officers of all cadres. Simultaneously it is also not oblivious towards its duty and obligations towards different other wings of the judiciary and administration, and as such it also organizes training programmes for OFS officials, members & mediators of the Consumer Forums, and the likes. To add to all these it also organizes Conferences, Seminars, Symposiums and Interactive Sessions under the aegis of the High Court of Orissa in order to provide a platform for discussion and deliberation on intricate questions of law, which in a way or the other helps the judicial officers and other stakeholders attending such programmes to return back home with substantial and valuable addition to their knowledge, experience & wisdom.

To further widen its scope and to increase the number of training programmes for the benefit of judicial officers and court staff of far off places, without compromising in the quality of training programmes to be imparted, five Regional Judicial Academies (in short RJAs) have been established at five different parts of the State, the same being Angul, Balasore, Ganjam at Berhampur, Koraput at Jeypore and Sambalpur. Each Regional Judicial Academy comprises of 4 to 8 numbers of cluster districts, and facilitates training programmes for officers, staff, advocates and other stakeholders of such Districts. Establishment of the RJAs have not only taken the training activities of the Academy to the grass root level in letter and spirit, but it has also substantially reduced wastage of judicial man days, in as much as the judicial officers and staff are no longer required to travel long distances during working days to attend the regular training programmes scheduled at Odisha Judicial Academy, Cuttack. The Regional Judicial Academies at different places are functioning with the same ethos, objective and mission with which the Academy functions at Cuttack.

The Academy as well as the five RJAs function under the direct supervision of the Judicial Academy & Training Committee of the High Court of Orissa. The said Committee is headed by Justice K.R. Mohapatra, Judge High Court of Orissa, as its Chairman, whereas Dr. Justice S.K. Panigrahi, Justice S. Ratho, Justice R. K. Pattanaik, Justice A. K. Mohapatra, and Justice A. C. Behera, Judges of the High Court of Orissa, function as its members. The Chief Justice, High Court of Orissa is the Patron-in-Chief of the Academy.

The Academy has got an annual training calendar, approved by the National Judicial Academy, and different training activities at the Academy as well as the five RJAs are conducted as per such approved calendar. The training module of the Academy is designed with a vision to make the trainees professionally skilled, sensitive, empathetic, and responsive. It, over and above the special programmes organized from time to time, broadly includes-

  • Induction training programmes for the newly recruited Civil Judges (Junior Division) as well as the officers appointed in the cadre of District Judge by direct recruitment from the bar,
  • Foundation training programmes for the officers promoted to the cadre of District Judge by usual promotion (UP) and limited competitive examination (LCE),
  • Refresher training programmes for in service Judicial Officers of different cadres, i.e. early career training for Civil Judges (Jr. Divn.), mid-career training for Civil Judges (Sr. Divn.) and advanced career training for officers in the cadre of the District Judges, and
  • Refresher training programmes for staff of the High Court of Orissa and District Courts.

Apart from the above, training programmes on the following leading decisions of the Apex Court, besides others, were also organized by the Academy periodically;

  • Aureliano Fernandes Vs. State of Goa & Others, AIR Online 2023 SC 423, in the matter of Sexual Harassment at Workplace, the duty and responsibility of the employer, especially in Court’s establishments,
  • Gohar Mohammed Vs. UPSRTC and Others – CA 9322 / 2022, in the matter of cases dealt with by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunals and the application of the MV Act to such cases,
  • Triple method of pendency reduction in view of Suo Moto Writ Petition (Crl.) No. 04/2021 of Supreme Court, in the matter of scope of application of Plea Bargaining, Compounding and Probation of Offenders Act as effective tools for case load reduction,
  • Satender Kumar Antil Vs. CBI, (2022) 10 SCC 51 and Siddharth Vs. State of UP, (2022) 1 SCC 676, in the matter of arrest, remand, custody, and bail to accused persons,
  • Aditi Alias Mithi vs. Jitesh Sharma, Crl. Appeal No. 3446 of 2023, in the matter of duties and responsibilities of the Courts dealing with family disputes and proper implementation of guidelines of Supreme Court in the case of Rajnesh v. Neha & Anr, (2021) 2 SCC 324, and
  • Raj Kumar @ Suman v. State (NCT of Delhi), Criminal Appeal No. 1471 of 2023 in the matter of proper application of Sec.313 of CrPC while recording the statement of accused.

With the advent of information & technology in all the fields, judiciary has taken keen interest in introducing many e-initiatives, which amongst many others include establishment of paperless courts, live streaming of court proceedings, virtual & hybrid mode of hearing in courts, N-STEP, etc., for making the justice delivery system more transparent & efficient. In fact, the High Court of Orissa is the pioneer & torchbearer amongst different High Courts of the Country on this count. To enable the officers, staff, advocates & for that matter all the stakeholders of the justice delivery system, to keep pace with the changing work culture because of introduction of information and technology in the day to day work of the courts, the Academy also conducts regular training programmes on different ICT training modules covering all the activities under the e-Courts project as well as the unique initiatives by the High Court, and hands-on training programmes on VC Rules, paperless Courts, recording of evidence of vulnerable witness and functioning of VWDCs, etc.

The physical & mental wellbeing of the trainee officers as well as the need for sensitizing them on social issues, which besides others include rights of specially abled persons, gender discrimination, poverty, environmental pollution and access to justice for the marginalized and downtrodden, are given prime importance while preparing training modules for the trainee officers. To enhance their judicial and administrative abilities and to make them sensitive and responsive to the challenges they face during their service career, subjects like time and resource management, stress management, docket-management & court management are included in the training curriculum for the judicial officers. The Academy aims at overall development of the trainee officers, and as such provisions for yoga classes, gymnasium, and library having different books, newsletters and journals, have been made at the academy for the trainee officers. In addition to all these, special visit programmes for the newly recruited judicial officers to different judicial academies of different States of the Country are arranged so as to facilitate sharing of best practices, which gives them a wide exposure and broadens the horizon of their vision and knowledge.

Highlights of Important Programmes at Odisha Judicial Academy during the Year 2024

  1. Induction Programmes:

The Induction training of the 54 Civil Judges (Jr. Division) of 2022 batch commenced on 30th March 2024 with the oath taking ceremony, wherein Justice Chakradhari Sharan Singh, Chief Justice, High Court of Orissa and Patron-in-Chief, Odisha Judicial Academy, administered oath to the trainee officers, in presence of the Judges of High Court of Orissa. The training activities continued throughout the year. Similarly, the induction/institutional training of the three Judicial Officers in the cadre of District Judge, appointed by way of direct recruitment from the Bar was conducted from 1st June to 31st August 2024.

Newly recruited Civil Judges (Junior Division) on probation 2022 batch
Visit of Civil Judges (Junior Division) on probation of 2022 batch to State Judicial Academy, Gujarat for sharing of best practices
Visit of Civil Judges (Junior Division) on probation of 2022 batch to National Forensic Science University, Gandhinagar for sharing of best practices
  1. Foundation Training Programmes:

Practical training sessions for the 10 Judicial Officers in the cadre of District Judges appointed through Usual Promotion & Limited Competitive Examination (UP & LCE) during 2023 were conducted from 08.01.2024 to 12.01.2024. Similarly, the institutional training of the newly promoted 16 Judicial Officers (UP & LCE) of the year 2024 was conducted from 18.11.2024 to 07.12.2024 through virtual mode, and their practical training was conducted at ROTI and SFSL, Bhubaneswar from 16.12.2024 to 20.12.2024.

  1. Refresher Training Programmes for Judicial Officers

Eighteen (18) Refresher training programmes for Judicial Officers of different cadres in the district judiciary were conducted during year 2024. All the programmes were of two-day duration during which various important topics of law were covered by erudite resource persons benefitting 401 numbers of Judicial Officers.

  1. Refresher Training Programmes for Staff

During the year 2024, the Academy conducted four (4) numbers of Refresher training programmes for staffs of District Courts as well as High Court as per the approved training calendar.

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

During the year 2024, 3 nos. of Hands-on Training programmes on “Paperless Court” and “Examination of vulnerable witness”, and 6 nos. of training programmes on the subject “ICT & Hands-on training on various e-services” for Civil Courts staff were organised by the Academy. Similarly, 23 nos. of e-Courts Phase-III capacity building training programmes for Judicial Officers, Staff & Advocates were conducted by the Academy during this year. These programmes benefitted a good number of Advocates, Advocates’ clerks, Court Staff and Judicial Officers of the State.

  1. Achievements of the Regional Judicial Academies

During the year 2024, a total of 50 nos. of refresher training programmes, 50 nos. of Hands-on training programmes and 30 nos. of ICT & Hands-on training programmes on various e-services for judicial officers and staff have been conducted in the five RJAs of the State, in which 629 Judicial Officers and 1843 District Courts Staff have been benefitted.

  1. Special Programmes organised at Odisha Judicial Academy during the year 2024
  1. On 6th January 2024, the Valedictory ceremony of 48 Civil Judges (Junior Division) on probation of 2021 batch was organized at the Odisha Judicial Academy after completion of their one-year induction training, and they were relieved from the Academy on 06.01.2024 to join at their respective places of posting.
  2. From 2nd to 4th February 2024, 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, 22 numbers of empanelled Mediators were present from different districts of the State.
  3. On 28th February 2024, a special programme titled as “Remembering Fali Sam Nariman, Senior Advocate & Jurist, and his contribution to the growth of Justice Delivery system in India” was conducted at Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of Odisha Judicial Academy, in the august presence of Justice Chakradhari Sharan Singh, Chief Justice, High Court of Orissa and all the Judges of the High Court of Orissa. Respected Advocate General, Deputy Solicitor General, President, Secretary & Executive Body Members of Orissa High Court Bar Association, President & Members of Odisha State Bar Council, designated Senior Advocates of High Court of Orissa, Officers of the Registry, High Court of Orissa, Officers of OSLSA & Judicial Officers working at the Headquarters station of Cuttack participated in this programme.
  4. From 15th to 17th March 2024, a three-day Orientation-cum-Induction training programme was conducted at OJA for the 32 Principal Magistrates of Juvenile Justice Boards (PMJJBs) of the State as per the three days training module of the SAMVAD, NIMHANS.
  5. On 24.03.2024, a one-day training programme on “PC & PNDT Act, 1994” was conducted at Odisha Judicial Academy for 50 SDJMs and JMFCs (Cog.) of the State as per the request of the Directorate of Family Welfare, Govt. of Odisha.
  6. On 30.03.2024, the Oath taking Ceremony of newly recruited Civil Judges (Junior Division) on Probation of 2022 Batch was organized at the Academy, wherein Justice Chakradhari Sharan Singh, Chief Justice, High Court of Orissa and Patron-in-Chief, Odisha Judicial Academy, administered oath to the trainee officers in presence of the Judges, High Court of Orissa. As per the direction of Court, Civil Judges (Junior Division) of 2021 batch (at that time posted as JMSCs at different stations of the State) participated physically in the aforesaid oath taking ceremony, which was followed by an interactive session.
  7. On 28.04.2024, a one-day special training programme on newly enacted three criminal laws, i.e. the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, was conducted on hybrid mode. 90 Judicial Officers comprising of Principal District Judges, Judges of Family Courts, and Chief Judicial Magistrates participated in the training programme physically, whereas the other judicial officers of the State participated in it through online mode (Zoom Link). The newly recruited trainee Civil Judges (Jr. Divn.) of 2022 batch, who were undergoing institutional training at the Academy during that period, also participated in the aforesaid special training programme.
  8. In obedience to the letter of Chief Justice of India, three numbers of Capacity Building Training Programmes were conducted in the months of June 2024 on newly enacted three criminal laws, namely the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) 2023 and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) 2023, for the Judicial Officers, Prosecutors and Advocates of the State. The programmes were conducted by CAPT, Bhopal, CDTI, Kolkata and BPR & D, Govt. of India. The first training programme involving physical presence of 113 nos. of Judicial Officers was conducted on 1st & 2nd June 2024, which was attended by all other Judicial Officers of the State through virtual mode. The second training programme involving 30 nos. of Prosecutors was conducted through physical mode on 8th & 9th June 2024 and all the other Prosecutors of the State attended the said programme through virtual mode. The third training programme involving 288 nos. of Advocates was conducted through virtual mode on 23rd June 2024.
  9. From 28th June 2024 to 30th June 2024, the District Judges’ Conference was organized at the Odisha Judicial Academy by the High Court of Orissa, Cuttack.
  10. On 26th July 2024, the foundation day of High Court of Orissa was observed by the Court at Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of Odisha Judicial Academy. The Chief Justice as well as Judges of the High Court of Orissa had graced the event. A drama, titled as “Saheed Lakhan Nayak” was presented by the Cultural Society of High Court of Orissa and this drama was organised by the Judicial Archives of the Court.
  11. On 3rd & 4th August 2024, the East Zone-I Regional Conference on “Contemporary Judicial Developments and Strengthening Justice Through Law & Technology” was held at Odisha Judicial Academy, Cuttack, by the High Court of Orissa and the Odisha Judicial Academy, under the aegis of National Judicial Academy, Bhopal. The event was graced by the Judges of the Supreme Court of India, the Chief Justices and Judges of different High Courts, as well as the Chief Justice and Judges of the High Court of Orissa. 70 Judicial Officers of all cadres from the States of Odisha, Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, as well as Officials of National Judicial Academy, Bhopal, also attended the aforementioned Regional Conference.
  12. On 17.08.2024, the State Conference of DLSAs of Odisha was held at Odisha Judicial Academy, Cuttack, by the Odisha State Legal Services Authority under the aegis of NALSA. The event was graced by Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Judge Supreme Court of India & Executive Chairman, National Legal Services Authority (As he then was). All the Chairpersons and Secretaries of DLSAs of Odisha participated in this Conference.
  13. On 01.09.2024, a one-day “State level Consultation on Effective Implementation of the Juvenile Justice Act and POCSO Act with specific focus on Children with Disabilities” was held at Odisha Judicial Academy, Cuttack. The event was organized jointly by the Department of SSEPD, Department of W & CD and UNICEF, under the aegis of the Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court of Orissa. The event was graced by the Chief Justice and Judges of High Court of Orissa. Judicial Officers nominated by the Court from across the State of Odisha and other stake holders of Govt. of Odisha participated in the aforesaid programme.
  14. A half-day Interactive Session was held on 09.10.2024 from 02.00 PM onwards for the Judicial Officers of 2021 batch, trainee Judicial Officers of 2022 batch and other nominated Judicial Officers of the State at Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of Odisha Judicial Academy. In this session, Justice K. V. Viswanathan, Judge, Supreme Court of India, presided over the session and interacted with the young judicial officers, clarified their queries, and gave valuable suggestions and guidance to them. The Chief Justice and other Judges of the High Court of Orissa also graced the session. 150 nos. of Judicial Officers in the cadres of Civil Judge (Jr. Divn.) and Civil Judge (Sr. Divn.) of the State participated physically in the aforesaid programme, whereas all other judicial officers of the State participated through virtual mode (YouTube Link and Zoom Link).
  15. On 26.11.2024, a one-hour online Talk Session (from 4.30 PM to 5.30 PM) was organized by the Odisha Judicial Academy for judicial officers of all cadres of the State through virtual mode on the occasion of ‘Constitution Day’. 90 Judicial Officers of the State participated in the aforesaid programme through virtual mode (Zoom Link).
  16. On 22nd December, 2024, a programme for release of Judicial Calendar of Odisha, 2025, was organized by the High Court of Orissa at Chief Justice Gati Krushna Misra Auditorium of the Academy, in which top 12 student artists, whose paintings were selected to be displayed in the Judicial Calendar, 2025, were felicitated.
East Zone-I Regional Conference on “Contemporary Judicial Developments and Strengthening Justice Through Law & Technology” held at Odisha Judicial Academy, Cuttack
Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Judge, Supreme Court of India & Executive Chairman, NALSA, delivering the inaugural address in the State Conference of DLSAs of Odisha.
Participants of the State Conference of DLSAs of Odisha.
Participants of the East Zone-I Regional Conference on “Contemporary Judicial Developments and Strengthening Justice Through Law & Technology”
Intercative session with Judicial Offiers presided over by Justice K.V. Viswanathan held
at Odisha Judicial Academy, Cuttack