Chief Justice Surya Kant turned the key at the Bihar State Legal Services Authority in Patna, marking the opening of the nation’s first Victim Rights Centre.
The centre will act as a single‑window hub, registering every case with a Victim Case Number and maintaining a unified record that spans legal, medical, financial, psychological, protection and rehabilitation needs.
Within 48 hours a panel lawyer will be assigned, while counsellors and case workers get attached as required, ensuring every step moves on a fixed timetable.
Unlike traditional schemes, the centre will not hand out compensation itself; instead it will liaise with police, hospitals, One‑Stop Centres and welfare departments to make sure benefits actually reach the victim.
Special attention will be given to ‘victims of circumstances’—families of long‑detained under‑trial inmates and those acquitted after years in jail—whose financial and social fallout is often overlooked.
The pilot will run for 12 months in Patna; a performance review will decide whether the model rolls out across other districts, while a Transgender Helpline launches on 26 September, a fleet of multi‑utility vehicles rolls off, and a publication detailing the scheme goes to press.