India has 21 judges per million population: Govt

New Delhi: India has approximately 21 judges per million population, the government said in Rajya Sabha on Thursday, citing the sanctioned strength of the judiciary and census figures of 2011.

In a written reply to a question, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said for calculating the judge-population ratio for per million population in a particular year, the Department of Justice uses the criterion of using the population as per Census 2011 and as per available information regarding sanctioned strength of judges in the Supreme Court, high courts and district and subordinate courts in the particular year.

Based on the population as per the Census 2011 which was 1210.19 million and as per available information regarding sanctioned strength of judges in the Supreme Court, high courts and district and subordinate courts in the year 2023, the judge-population ratio in the country works out to be approximately 21 judges per million population, he said.