GS Prelims- Indian Polity and Governance/Government Schemes
Context
- The Ministry of Law and Justice has launched DISHA 2.0 — Designing Innovative Solutions for Holistic Access to Justice — a Central Sector Scheme with an approved financial outlay of Rs. 255 crore for the period 2026-31, for pan-India implementation.
- The scheme aims at leveraging technology to develop and enhance the outreach of citizen-friendly solution platforms for legal services.
Key Highlights
- DISHA 2.0 has four components: Tele-Law, Nyaya Bandhu, Legal Literacy and Legal Awareness Programme (LLLAP), and VIDHI-Sanjeevani.
- Tele-Law offers free pre-litigation legal advice through a mobile-app and Toll-Free No. 14454, via CSCs/VLEs at the panchayat level.
- Nyaya Sahayaks have been engaged in Aspirational Blocks to strengthen legal service delivery.
- Nyaya Bandhu provides pro-bono legal aid to marginalized sections under Section 12 of the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, with panels in 23 High Courts.
- LLLAP spreads legal awareness through workshops, webinars, and IEC materials, in collaboration with Prasar Bharati.
- VIDHI-Sanjeevani sets up a centralized Integrated Dashboard, integrated with the Nyaya Setu AI Chatbot, to monitor scheme performance.
- VIDHI-Sanjeevani targets 50 lakh beneficiaries over 2026-31, with no state-specific targets.
About the Nyaya Setu
- A Generative AI-powered, multilingual, multi-modal chatbot platform, launched on 29 March 2026.
- Assists users on legal processes, rights, and next steps via voice/text across 22 Indian languages, using a voice-first interface.
- Built on a Hybrid Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) architecture, grounding responses in statutory legal texts to reduce AI hallucination risk.
About the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987
- Provides the statutory basis for Section 12, covering marginalized and disadvantaged sections eligible for free legal aid under Nyaya Bandhu.
Conclusion
Monitoring of the scheme’s outcomes is envisaged through VIDHI-Sanjeevani, supplemented by regular review meetings, field visits, regional workshops, and a dedicated Programme Management Unit (PMU). This information was given by the Union Minister of Law and Justice, Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
| Important CTC for UPSC from this article What is Nyay Setu What is DISHA 2.0 |