Cashless medical insurance of up to ₹5 lakh annually for advocates

At the Allahabad High Court Bar Association ceremony, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the new generation of advocates should become guardians of constitutional values and help take justice to the grassroots level. He said only a future-ready Bar can lay the foundation of a future-ready justice system.

He announced cashless medical insurance of up to Rs 5 lakh annually for all advocates active in the High Court and district courts of the state. He said the government will support furniture and equipment in the chambers of more than 10,000 advocates, 400 State Law Officers will be provided tablets, and the fees of State Law Officers have been increased by more than 50 percent.

He said before 2017, 45 to 50 percent of posts in UP Police were vacant, and transparency, accountability, law and order, and judicial infrastructure were challenges. He said police training capacity has been increased from 3,000 to 60,000 personnel per year.

He said earlier district courts in 10 districts functioned from temporary and rented buildings and advocates’ chambers were dilapidated. He said chambers for more than 10,000 advocates have now been constructed at a cost of Rs 700 crore.

He also announced that the Advocate Welfare Fund has been increased from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh and the eligibility age for financial assistance to family members upon the death of an advocate has been increased from 60 to 70 years.

He said the day was important as it marked Hindi Diwas, Hartalika Teej and Ganesh Chaturthi, and extended greetings to the people of the state. He said the advocate community is an important part of the country’s enlightened society and is considered both a creator of public opinion and a symbol of public trust.

He said the community played an important role from the freedom movement to the framing of the Constitution, the functioning of governance and administration, strengthening all pillars of democracy, and the current campaign of nation-building.

He said India’s freedom movement remained fragmented for a long time and gained new direction and momentum after Mahatma Gandhi left his legal practice in South Africa and took charge. He said Prayagraj witnessed many advocates who, while practising in the Allahabad High Court, played an active role in the freedom movement.

He said advocates such as Pandit Motilal Nehru and Mahamana Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya gave momentum to the country and the freedom movement and stood in support of revolutionaries. He said Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar also made significant contributions.

Referring to Dr Rajendra Prasad’s association with Prayagraj, he said the Presidential Suite on the banks of the Sangam reminds the nation of the President of the Constituent Assembly and the country’s first President, who visited Prayagraj during every Kumbh and observed Kalpavas during the Magh Mela.

He said the state government has decided to establish Dr Rajendra Prasad National Law University in Prayagraj to express gratitude for his contribution to the nation and his role from Constitution-making to serving as the first President of independent India.