West Bengal legal aid body sets up kiosks at rly stns to create awareness, provide services for free


PTI | Kolkata | Updated: 04-10-2021 18:30 IST | Created: 04-10-2021 18:30 IST
West Bengal legal aid body sets up kiosks at rly stns to create awareness, provide services for free
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The West Bengal State Legal Services Authority (SALSA) has started an outreach initiative to make ''access to justice for all'' easier, and roped in the railways to open kiosks for the programme at several important stations across the state, a senior official said here on Monday.

The programme is part of the pan-India awareness campaign launched by National Legal Services Authority to commemorate 75 years of the country's independence, Raju Mukherjee, member secretary, State Legal Services Authority, said.

''The State Legal Services Authority is under a statutory obligation to reach out to the last person in the queue residing in the remote areas of the state, and the campaign will go a long way in providing legal aid at doorsteps,'' Mukherjee said.

The Eastern Railway, South Eastern Railway, North Frontier Railway and Metro Railway authorities have been tapped for the project at the behest of Calcutta High Court Acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal, who is also the patron-in-chief and executive chairman of State Legal Services Authority, he said.

The zonal railways eagerly agreed to associate themselves with the campaign, assuring all cooperation by providing space for kiosks, banners, posters and other logistic support on the railway premises, a SALSA official said.

Booths have been erected at Howrah, Sealdah, Asansol, Kharagpur and New Jalpaiguri railway stations as part of the campaign, which will continue till November 14, the official said.

''These kiosks will not only create awareness amongst the passengers but will also make arrangements for providing free legal services on the spot,'' Mukherjee said.

These booths will be functioning daily from 8 am to 8 pm, manned by two trained paralegal volunteers, and are reportedly recording an average of 40 to 45 visitors.

''The numbers are expected to rise in the days to come,'' Mukherjee said.

Posters have also been put up inside the coaches of suburban trains in English, Bengali and Hindi and large informative banners placed at various railway stations across Bengal, the SALSA official said.

He further said that an endeavour is being made to set up similar kiosks at metro stations here in a phased manner.

The nationwide campaign was inaugurated by President Ram Nath Kovind on October 2 in New Delhi, in the presence of Chief Justice of India N V Ramana, who is also the executive chairman of NALSA, and Union Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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