& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Enlighten people on the benefits of village courts

Khulna district admin urges local journalists

Our Correspondent, Khulna
The Khulna district administration has urged local journalists to create awareness among people about village courts, which settle disputes at nominal cost and within a short time.
Village courts provide a fair process of arbitration to ensure justice for rural people, and journalists can play a significant role in making people aware of this opportunity, the officials said at a views exchange meetingyesterday.
Speaking on the occasion, Deputy Commissioner of Khulna Amin ul Ahasan requested journalists to publish positive and success stories about these courts.
He said village courts are comprised of a panel of five people - the Union Parishad (UP) chairman, two UP members, and two local persons. Each of the feuding parties chooses one of the UP members and one of the locals participating in the court.
The courts have jurisdiction over civil
disputes valued up to Tk 75,000, the DC said, adding, “Village courts will play a vital role in establishing good governance in Bangladesh. And local vulnerable groups, especially women, will benefit most from the courts."
In the daylong meeting held at Khulna Circuit House, 22 journalists took part and gave their opinions. The programme was part of the Activating Village Courts in Bangladesh (AVCB) project (Phase II), funded by the European Union, UNDP, and the government.
The aim of the project is to improve access to justice for disadvantaged and marginalised groups and transform the local justice system within the context of broader local governance reform in Bangladesh.
Arpona Ghosh, communications and outreach specialist of AVCB (Phase II), told The Daily Star that the project is being implemented in 41 unions of Phultala, Rupsha, Digholia, Dacope, Paikgachha and Koyra upazilas in Khulna.
"Between July 2017 and March 2018, a total of 1,908 cases have been settled out of the 2007 complaints and cases lodged with the village courts in Khulna," she said.
Hossain Ali Khandoker, director of Local Government Department of Khulna, and Faruq Ahmed, president of Khulna Press Club, among others, spoke at the meeting.
Since the inception of the project in 2009, a total of 87,200 cases were submitted to the village courts and 78 percent of these were resolved. The average time it takes to resolve a complaint is only 28 days compared to five years in the civil courts, according to UNDP. The 2nd phase (2016-2019) was launched in January 2016, targeting 2.1 crore people of 1,080 unions.