AI Portal SUPACE | 07 Apr 2021

Why in News

Recently, the Chief Justice of India (CJI) launched an Artificial Intelligence (AI) based portal ‘SUPACE’ in the judicial system aimed at assisting judges with legal research.

  • SUPACE is short for Supreme Court Portal for Assistance in Court’s Efficiency.
  • Earlier, the E-Courts Project was conceptualised on the basis of "National Policy and Action Plan for Implementation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the Indian Judiciary - 2005" submitted by the e-Committee of the Supreme Court.

Key Points

  • About SUPACE:
    • It is a tool that collects relevant facts and laws and makes them available to a judge.
    • It is not designed to take decisions, but only to process facts and to make them available to judges looking for an input for a decision.
    • Initially, it will be used on an experimental basis by the judges of Bombay and Delhi High Courts who deal with criminal matters.
  • Significance:
    • It will produce results customized to the need of the case and the way the judge thinks.
    • This will be time saving. It will help the judiciary and the court in reducing delays and pendency of cases.
    • AI will present a more streamlined, cost effective and time bound means to the fundamental right of access to justice.
    • It will make the service delivery mechanism transparent and cost-efficient.
  • Challenge:
    • Redundancy of certain posts after introduction of SUPACE.
      • Since it is intended to do what the human mind can do, but much more efficiently and methodically, there is apprehension in the generation of unemployment.

E-Courts Project

  • About:
    • It was conceptualized with a vision to transform the Indian Judiciary by ICT (Information and Communication Technology) enablement of Courts.
    • It is a pan-India Project, monitored and funded by the Department of Justice, Ministry of Law and Justice, for the District Courts across the country.
  • Objectives of the Project:
    • To provide efficient & time-bound citizen-centric services delivery.
    • To develop, install & implement decision support systems in courts.
    • To automate the processes to provide transparency and accessibility of information to its stakeholders.
    • To enhance judicial productivity, both qualitatively & quantitatively, to make the justice delivery system affordable, accessible, cost-effective, predictable, reliable and transparent.

Source:IE