Chief Justice Manjula Chellur of Calcutta High Court laid the foundation stone for a building for the Alternate Dispute Resolution Centre (ADRC) in Howrah on July 14. ADRC is run by the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), that provides free legal service to the weaker sections of society, including women and children. The cell also organises regular Lok Adalats for amicable settlement of disputes.

In Howrah, ADRC operated from a tiny room in the district judge's office. "We work from a small room and the adjoining porch for lack of space. Paperwork is huge and there is no place to sit and talk to clients. This was because we could not find a suitable place for the administrative office," said Mukulika Sinha, the secretary of DLSA.

A plot was identified for the proposed new building for ADRC near the district magistrate's bungalow on Rishi Bankim Chandra Road. A G+3 building has been planned. "Once we have a building we will be more organised," said Sinha. The Lok Adalats are now held for just half an hour everyday, on the Howrah court premises. "Now we can conduct Lok Adalat only for 30 minutes each day. Once the new building comes up, we can organise Lok Adalat through the day. Traffic cases, bank loan cases and public utility service cases can easily be settled there," said Sinha.

According to records, at the end of June 2016, there were 26,524 pending cases in Howrah court, that are more than five years old. The ADRC handles all civil cases and certain criminal cases, in both pre- and post-litigation stages. "If someone approaches us in the pre-litigation stage, we try to settle the matter without going to court. In post-litigation stages, we can settle the matter if both parties agree," said Sinha.