Blockchain technology can enable India to find solutions to huge logjams in courts, Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said on Friday.Blockchain is emerging Internet-based technology that can enhance the speed of transactions while increasing transparency. It is widely recognised as having the potential to transform several sectors of the economy, including banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) industry, travel, retail, healthcare and supply chain, among others.With two-thirds of all civil cases pertaining to registration of property or land, the country's policy think-tank is working with judiciary to find disruptive ways to expedite registrations, mutations and enable a system of smart transactions that is free of corruption and middlemen.Amitabh Kant was addressing the International Blockchain Congress here via video-conferencing from New Delhi.The three-day conference is being jointly organised by the Telangana and Goa governments in collaboration with Niti Aayog.There are three crore cases currently pending in Indian courts, including 42.5 lakh cases in high courts and 2.6 crore cases in lower courts. Even if 100 cases are disposed off every hour without sleeping and eating, it would take more than 35 years to catch up, he said.
Amitabh Kant said Niti Aayog was applying Blockchain technology to pressing problems of the country in areas such as land registry, health records, fertiliser subsidy distribution system, menace of fraudulent drugs and agriculture supply chain. These disruptive projects will bring immense productive efficiency, he said.On transforming the land registry system using blockchain, Niti Aayog is in advanced stage of implementing proof of concept pilot in Chandigarh to assess its potential to solve the problem of India's land-based registry system.Amitabh Kant believes blockchain can be a key driver for ease of doing business. He said while India jumped 42 places in the ease of doing business by the World Bank during last two years to move up to 100th position, two indicators were still holding it down. In the enforcement of contracts, India is ranked 164 out of 190 and in registration of property it is ranked 154 out of 190.Blockchain brings ease of collaboration for enterprises and ease of living for citizens by bringing in transparency."It's powerful because it allows multiple parties to collaborate and come to consensus without any need of third party," he said.