Vacancies in Presiding & Registry Cadres

• Member vacancies halt hearings, while vacant registry posts disrupt court management. 
  • ITAT: 27 of 126 Member posts vacant; all 7 Deputy Registrar posts vacant.
  • NGT: Only 5 Judicial and 6 Expert Members against statutory minimum of 10 each.

• Proactive recruitment: Start appointments before vacancies arise.
•  Registry priority: Fill essential registry and support posts on priority through coordination with ministries/recruitment agencies.

Over-Reliance on Contractual & Outsourced Personnel

• Temporary staff causes attrition, loss of institutional memory and weakens specialised court-management capacity. 
  • NCLT: >95% administrative staff contractual.
  • TDSAT: Staff strength frozen at 52 posts since 2001, increasing outsourcing dependence.

• Stable cadres: Conduct staffing audits and create permanent posts. 
• Reserve panels: Explore valid waiting/reserve lists to quickly replace resignations and reduce recruitment delays.

Escalating Backlogs & Timeline Breaches

• Backlogs reduce public/creditor confidence, asset value and effectiveness of legal remedies. 
  • ITAT: 19,275 additional pending cases in 5 months. 
  • NCLT: Frequent breach of Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) timelines.

• Strict targets: Enforce monthly disposal and order-pronouncement timelines.
• Case management: Use stage-wise databases for legacy cases and dedicated subject Benches to balance dockets.

Inadequate & Ageing Infrastructure

• Outdated/rented premises restrict expansion and modern court administration.
  • NCLT: Courtrooms fail NCMS standards. 
  • RCT: No separate capital budget; depends on Zonal Railways.

• Dedicated capital budgets: Ensure financial autonomy and timely infrastructure development.
• Modern courts: Replace rented/old premises with permanent complexes meeting judicial standards.

IT Obsolescence & Digital Transformation Gaps

• Outdated IT, fragmented case-management systems and inadequate technical support restrict access and threaten data security.
  • NGT: No dedicated internal IT section.
  • NCLT: Existing e-Court portal has outlived its lifecycle.

• Dedicated IT sections: Create permanent technical posts at all Benches.
• Upgrades & audits: Fund hardware/software upgrades, prioritise NCLT 2.0 and conduct regular cyber-security audits.

Domain-Specific Gaps & Limited Public Access

• Limited specialised training weakens technical benches; linguistic barriers restrict access to justice.
  • TDSAT: Member structure unchanged since 2001, creating gaps in cyber fraud, Aadhaar and AI. 
  • RCT: Legal aid available at only 9 of 23 benches.

• Capacity building: Regular specialised training with technical institutions.
• Access reforms: Multilingual information, universal filing systems such as a “Zero FIR” model, and expanded legal-aid desks.