Guwahati, October 11, 2025 - Justice Surya Kant, a Supreme Court judge and Executive Chairman of the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA), addressed critical social issues plaguing the eastern and northeastern regions of India during the inaugural address at the NALSA East-Zone Regional Conference in Sonapur, Guwahati. Justice Kant emphasized the need for the justice system to extend beyond courtrooms to reach marginalized communities in these areas.

Highlighting the paradox of abundance and vulnerability, Justice Kant acknowledged the rich contributions of the eastern region to India's economy and culture, ranging from Assam's tea to Odisha's coastline, Bengal's intellectual heritage, and Jharkhand's mineral wealth. Despite this, many states in the region continue to struggle with poverty, inequality, and lack of access to justice. He stressed that true progress is not measured by GDP or statistics but by the equitable distribution of justice, dignity, and opportunity across every community.

Justice Kant identified several pressing social issues confronting the region, including child marriage, drug abuse, displacement of tribal communities, the plight of tea garden workers, and a growing mental health crisis. He cited data indicating that Bihar still reports approximately 40% of women married before the age of 18, while Assam has witnessed a six-fold increase in cases registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act in the past four years. He stated that these are interconnected issues that are chapters of the same story, a story of structural vulnerability.

To address these challenges, Justice Kant urged legal services institutions to serve as a bridge between law and life, ensuring that justice extends beyond books and courtrooms to those most in need. He outlined several initiatives already being implemented by NALSA, including:

• DAWN (Drug Awareness and Wellness Navigation): A program focused on drug abuse prevention and rehabilitation.
• ASHA: A standard operating procedure for tackling child marriage through education and vocational training.
• SAMVAD: An initiative to provide legal access to tribal and denotified communities.
• Legal Services to Workers in the Unorganised Sector: A program aimed at ensuring fair wages and workplace dignity.

Justice Kant emphasized that the success of the conference would not be measured by eloquent speeches or resolutions but by tangible results, such as saving children from premature marriage in Bihar, helping young individuals in Nagaland overcome addiction, securing forest rights for tribal families in Odisha, and ensuring education and nourishment for tea workers' children in Assam.

He called for stronger coordination among agencies and the effective use of technology to extend legal aid to remote areas, while also cautioning that technology should remain a bridge and not a substitute for human connection.

The two-day conference, jointly organized by NALSA, the Assam State Legal Services Authority, and the Gauhati High Court, addresses issues such as child rights, narcotics control, tribal protection, labor welfare, and mental health. Justice Kant concluded by describing India's eastern states as "frontiers of justice" and urged legal service institutions to remain temples of compassion, quoting Assamese saint Srimanta Sankardev: “Manuhor maromat Ishwar thake” (God resides in human compassion).