Overcrowding at family courts and lack of facilities

With the passage of time, major changes are taking place in the design of buildings. In the old days, there were no separate buildings for a court or a hospital. The buildings available for convenience were converted into courts, hospitals or other offices. There are many courts, hospitals and other government institutions in India that are functioning in this way. Now, buildings are designed according to the needs of each institution. It has not been many years in India since buildings were designed according to the needs of various institutions. The layout and design of offices started changing with the growth of the IT sector.

Even new government offices are changing in that way. However, most of the court buildings have not changed in a timely manner. Only the High Court complexes have changed in a modern way. As the climate changes with each passing year, offices where many people gather during hot weather and other times will not become suitable for the modern era if they are not air-conditioned. No car manufacturing company now launches cars without AC. When such changes take place in society, our government institutions will also have to make changes in the building model and design accordingly.

A study conducted by the State Child Rights Commission has pointed out that our family courts are bloated due to limited space, lack of seating facilities, and lack of other facilities and amenities. The High Court and the government should prepare a long-term plan and start efforts to resolve this. The study says that Kerala is behind the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi and Rajasthan in terms of facilities in family courts. The counselling room of the Ettumanoor Family Court barely has the space to sit for two people. None of the four family courts in Thiruvananthapuram has specially equipped counselling rooms. Specially equipped rooms with good privacy are needed for purposes such a counselling. Special facilities and rooms with curtains are needed for breastfeeding.

In short, the needs and facilities of a family court are different to that of district courts. The report also states that sittings are not being held in the Pathanamthitta Family Court due to technical reasons. The number of divorce cases is increasing every year. The number of divorce cases in Kerala increased by 40 percent between 2016 and 2022. An average of 46 divorce cases are received in the 28 family courts in the state every day. The Supreme Court had recently directed that divorce cases be decided without delay. The limitation of buildings should not become an obstacle to the speedy disposal of cases. Therefore, efforts should be made by the authorities to start courts in buildings constructed for family courts, at least one in each district initially.