Amritsar/Chandigarh, February 18

Punjab Advocate General Atul Nanda has mooted a comprehensive insurance cover for lawyers with the Advocates Welfare Fund, which is currently being used only for compensation to the legal fraternity.

Addressing the inaugural function at the two-day workshop organised by the Bar Council of India, on improving professional standards at the Bar, Nanda called for a radical break from the conventional use of the Fund in order to provide wider assistance to the lawyers. Such a move, he said, would also help not only protect but in fact augment the principle corpus of the Fund.

In his keynote address, the senior advocate also favoured the establishment of an academy for improving the skills of lawyers. He was, however, of the view that such academy should be participative in nature rather than being a State product. When the legal profession volunteers a fund for setting up such an institution, matched by the Bar Council, then there will be a sense of partnership to ensure the success of such an academy, he said, adding that the state may, at best, be called upon to provide land and other external infrastructure.

Endorsing Nanda’s view, Justice Mahesh Grover suggested that until such an effort was in place and executed, the Chandigarh Judicial Academy could be used for such purposes. Justice Anil Ksheterpal, Judge, High Court of Punjab & Haryana, underlined the importance of senior advocates mentoring and training the junior advocates, which could go a long way in strengthening the judicial system, particularly in the prevailing environment when the judiciary was under extreme pressure.

Manan Kumar Mishra, Senior Advocate and Chairman of the Bar Council of India, delivered the presidential address, Justice Mahesh Grover, Judge, Punjab and Haryana High Court, presided over the inaugural programme, which was participated by various legal luminaries and Judges of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana. Also present were Vajinder Singh Alawat and Jaiveer Yadav, the Chairman and Former Chairman respectively of the Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana.