Over 9 lakh cases involving Rs 230 crore disposed of at Lok Adalat in Chhattisgarh

Raipur, Sep 22 (PTI) More than 9 lakh cases involving settlements of more than Rs 230 crore were disposed of at the National Lok Adalat in Chhattisgarh, officials said on Sunday.

The year's third National Lok Adalat in Chhattisgarh was held on Saturday, spanning taluka courts to the high court, making justice more approachable and swifter, the Chhattisgarh State Legal Services Authority (CGSLSA) said in a statement.

Chief Justice of Chhattisgarh High Court and patron-in-chief of CGSLSA Ramesh Sinha was virtually connected with all 23 district courts from the high court premises in Bilaspur district headquarters to boost the morale of judicial officers, it said.

Chief Justice Sinha interacted with principal district judges and judicial officers and visited two benches constituted for the National Lok Adalat at the high court, it said.

As per the release, at least 10,10,095 cases were heard at the Lok Adalat, of which 9,00,513 matters, comprising pre-litigation and pending cases, were disposed of, and settlements of more than Rs 230 crore were awarded.

These cases included labour disputes, motor accident claims, cheque dishonour cases, civil matters, land acquisition, plea bargains, criminal compoundable offences, arbitration and matrimonial cases, and issues related to electricity and water bills, it said In Sukma district, where litigants faced difficulties reaching the court premises due to floods in the region, cases were settled through video conferencing, the release said.

The maximum number of 1,93,203 cases were disposed of in Bilaspur district, while the highest settlement amount of more than Rs 59 crore was awarded in Bemetara district, it stated.