A two days Training Workshop on “The Concept and Techniques of Mediation” for Family Court Judges (Varanasi Cluster) was organized by High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, under the guidance of Justice Pritinker Diwaker, Hon’ble Chief Justice on 15th & 16th July at Circuit House (First Floor), Varanasi.
Justice KJ Thaker was the guest of honour at this event.
The programme was conducted under the aegis of The Allahabad High Court Committee for ‘Sensitization of Family Court Matters’, Chaired by Justice Sunita Agarwal, Senior Judge, Allahabad High Court, in association with ‘The Committee for Mediation and Conciliation Centre at Allahabad’.
The workshop consisted of brainstorming on a wide arena of topics such as Effective and Ineffective communication, Barriers to Communication, Types of Communication, Verbal Communication, Non-Verbal Communication, Negotiation Styles, Competitive and Co-operative Negotiation Skills and various other allied topics through interactive sessions, role-plays and screening of relevant video clippings. The workshop was aimed at enhancing the skills of the Family Court Judges in dealing with matters of matrimonial disputes in the long run.
The resource persons for the workshop were expert Mediation Trainers of the Mediation and Conciliation Project Committee (M.C.P.C.), Supreme Court namely, Sri Anoop Kumar Srivastava, Sri Niraj Upadhyay, Smt. Rajlakshmi Sinha and Sri Sandeep Saxena. They focused on providing a panoramic outlook on the importance of tools of Mediation in resolving Family Disputes. The training will go a long way in enhancing mediation skills of the participating Family Court Judges.
The Valedictory Session of the training program was conducted in the august presence of Hon’ble Mr. Justice Vinod Diwakar, members of the Committee for Sensitization of Family Court Matters and Hon’ble Mr. Justice Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal, Administrative Judge, Varanasi. In his adress, Hon’ble Mr. Justice Vinod Diwakar while expressing their satisfaction and happiness on training program stated that ensuring punctuality among Judicial Officers is crucial for fostering a culture of timeline in the Court system. When Judicial officers arrive promptly at the Officer, it sets a positive example for the subordinate staff, encouraging them to also arrive them on time. This collective commitment to punctuality creates an environment conducive to the early resolution of pending cases. By starting the day efficiently and promptly, the Court can Maximize its productivity and contribute to reduce case backlog in the long run. Punctuality amoung Judicial Officers ultimatery paves the way for expedited justice delivery.
Hon’ble Mr. Justice Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal adressed that only 20% of cases are brought before Family Courts, while the remaining 80% are resolved through the intervention of elders and mukhiyas in the families. The success of these training programs will be measured by the increase in the percentage of family disputes resolved through the techniques of alternative dispute resolution, such mediation and conciliation. He further emphasized that the Family Court Judges should promptly fix interim maintenance, based on prime facie evidence to support the female litigants in contesting their case. Justice Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal expressed appreciation for the arrangements made by the Varanasi Judgeship.
Certificates were distributed to the participating family court Judges by the Judges of the High Court, present in the programme.
Dr. Ajaya Krishna Vishvesha, District Judge, Varanasi Judgeship extented his heartfelt gratitude to the Hon’ble Mr. Justice Ajay Bhanot, Hon’ble Mr. Justice Vinod Diwakar and Hon’ble Mr. Justice Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal for their valuable time and guidance. He expressed his appreciation to all the Mediation Trainers and Participants and the team of Judicial Officers of Varanasi Judgeship and staff from Hon’ble High Court, Allahabad, who made all possible efforts to make this program successful.
This concludes the Phase-I Mediation Training Programme conducted in 6 clusters namely Allahabad, Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Agra, Gautam Buddh Nagar and Varanasi, covering all the Districts of U.P.
The Mediation Training Programme will enter in its Phase-II very soon.
