Nagaland State Legal Services Authority (NSLSA) attended the two-day national meet of PLVs with the theme “soldiers for legal services institutions at grassroots para legal volunteers” organized by the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) in association with Delhi State Legal Services Authority from April 29 to 30 at A.P. Shinde auditorium, New Delhi.
According to a release by NSLA, inaugurating the national meet, justice J.S. Khehar, chief justice of India and patron-in-chief NALSA, said that PLV enabled the ordinary, helpless Indian to take the benefit of legal system for alleviating suffering and injustice.
He said that in the absence of such timely help to most Indians, the credibility of the legal system and the rule of law came under severe strain.
Emphasizing on proper implementation of NALSA’s Poverty Alleviation Scheme 2015 to effectively tackle poverty, J.S. Khehar said that the last mile connectivity for villager under these schemes was not the lawyer but the PLV working under the competent legal services authority.
He appraised that it was the PLV who imparted the awareness of laws and the legal system and also gave advice and tries to amicably settle simple disputes at the source itself, so that the parties do not have to travel from the village to the nearest legal services authority’s office or the ADR center.
Justice J.S. Khehar opined that the revised PLV Scheme 2013 should be put on a firmer basis by requiring each such volunteer to file work-plan and schedule and keep a diary provided by the competent legal services authority for each day’s work.
Suggesting that there should be a graded system of honours as an incentive for graduation of first time volunteers to senior and mentoring volunteers in a system of volunteer’s merit-cum-seniority, J.S. Khehar also said that there was a need to restructure the approach and design a program to prepare skill driven paralegals who can- properly research and investigate facts or laws related to a case etc.
Ravi Shankar Prasad, union minister of Law and Justice and Electronics and Information Technology delivered special address, while Jusctice Dipak Misra, judge Supreme Court of India and executive chairman NALSA pronounced the keynote address.
This was followed by technical sessions during which judges of Supreme Court of India and judges of High Court who were also the secretary and chairman of State Legal Services Authority were the speakers.
B. Yemlong Chaba, PLV Tuensang DLSA and Zonal Best PLV 2016 also gave a presentation at the national meet. Member secretaries, SLSAs, secretaries of DLSAs and selected PLVs from all over the country participated in the meet.
The five NSLSA members who attended the meet are Nino Iralu, member secretary NSLSA and special judge TDP vigilance commission, Tucuno Vamuzo, secretary Longleng DLSA amd CJM, B. Yemlong Chaba, PLV Tuensang DLSA and Zonal Best PLV 2016, L. Pukho Meyo, PLV Tuensang DLSA and Medochutuo Kiewhuo, PLV Kohima DLSA.