Ranchi: The second National Lok Adalat held across the state on Saturday, helped to resolve pending provident fund (PF) disputes of 67 workers, the Jharkhand State Legal Services Authority (Jhalsa) said.The benches also disposed of 22,92,849 pre-litigation cases and 1,55,340 pending cases, settling claims worth Rs 853.98 crore.Jhalsa said the workers came to know about the Lok Adalat through YouTube and other social media platforms. They then filed a pre-litigation complaint before the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), Ranchi, alleging that their employer had failed to deposit PF contributions, depriving them of their earnings.During the inquiry, it emerged that some PF accounts under the Atmanirbhar Bharat Rojgar Yojana had been frozen due to technical faults in the approval process. The DLSA mediator took up the matter with the PF office and completed the formalities required to de-freeze the accounts, which held a total of Rs 70 lakh. As a result, all 67 workers received their pending dues.Earlier, Jharkhand High Court judge and Jhalsa executive chairman Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad launched the Lok Adalat virtually from the district court in Ranchi. He also unveiled a statue of Mahatma Gandhi and inaugurated the ‘Didi Cafe’, vulnerable witness deposition centre, protected witness room and QR code-generated application system at the civil court.Justice Prasad urged advocates to spread awareness about the Lok Adalat. “If people are aware, maximum number of them would get immediate and free justice,” he said, adding that the forum also helps reduce the burden of pending cases.He also distributed cheques among beneficiaries under various schemes, including motor accident compensation.
