Stenos turn to old technology

Judge to press for UPS system at courts.

LAHORE: Cases at the subordinate courts are regularly delayed because of electricity load shedding at the subordinate courts, The Express Tribune has learnt.

Some 30 cases are affected every day, according to data gathered by The Express Tribune at the Sessions Court, which suffers three to four hours of load-shedding during the working day.

The delays are usually caused because witness statements cannot be recorded during power outages as the computers go off.

There are typewriters available, but they slow down the process.

“It gets really dark and you can’t see the page as you’re typing,” said a stenographer. “It’s especially slow compared to a computer when you make a mistake or have to change something.”

Some judges have taken to lighting candles in the courtroom while others use light from their mobile phones. “The first thing I do when the lights go out is shine my mobile phone light on the accused to make sure he is still in handcuffs,” said a judge.

When the lights went out on Saturday, proceedings had to be delayed in the courts of Additional District and Sessions Judges Aurangzeb, Hamid Hussain, Javedul Hassan Chishti, Tahir Khan Niazi, Malik Tariq Mehmood Zargham, Saeedullah Mughal, Muhammad Sheraz Kiani, Mahrookh Aziz Tarar and several others because witness statements could not be recorded.

Shaukat, said that he and seven other witnesses in a murder case entered a courtroom just as the lights went out. Rather than continue proceedings, he said, the hearing was adjourned for an hour. District and Sessions Judge Mujahid Mustaqeem Ahmed said that the courts could not afford to install a diesel generator.

However, he said that he would push for the installation of a UPS (uninterrupted power supply) system so that the lights and computers could be run during power outages.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 9^th, 2012.