Supreme Court to Host National Consultation on Ten Years of Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, on October 10–11
The Supreme Court of India is hosting a two-day National Annual Stakeholders Consultation on October 10 and 11, 2026, to mark ten years of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. The consultation aims to assess the progress made in implementing the law, examine persistent challenges and identify priorities for strengthening India’s juvenile justice and child protection systems over the next decade.
Organised by the Supreme Court’s Juvenile Justice Committee in association with UNICEF India, the consultation is being held at the Auditorium of the C-Block Administrative Buildings Complex of the Supreme Court in New Delhi. The event brings together judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts, senior government officials, child protection experts and representatives of organisations working for children’s welfare.
Chief Justice of India Justice Surya Kant is scheduled to inaugurate the consultation. The inaugural session will feature opening remarks by Justice B.V. Nagarathna, Supreme Court judge and chairperson of the Juvenile Justice Committee, followed by introductory remarks from Cynthia McCaffrey, UNICEF India’s Country Representative.
A key highlight of the inaugural session is the release of a compendium of landmark judgments delivered by the Supreme Court and various High Courts concerning the Juvenile Justice Act. The publication covers important judicial decisions from 2015 through September 2026 and is intended to provide a consolidated reference for understanding the development of juvenile justice jurisprudence in India.
The consultation comes at an important stage in the implementation of the 2015 legislation, which establishes the legal framework for dealing with children in conflict with the law and providing care and protection to vulnerable children. The discussions are expected to examine how effectively the law has been implemented across States and Union Territories and identify areas requiring stronger institutional coordination and accountability.
One of the principal areas of discussion will be the rights of children in conflict with the law, including the procedures followed by Juvenile Justice Boards when conducting preliminary assessments in cases involving alleged heinous offences. These assessments are legally significant in determining whether certain children aged 16 to 18 should have their cases considered for trial under the adult criminal justice system, subject to statutory safeguards and judicial oversight.
The consultation will also address adoption procedures, institutional care, rehabilitation and the protection of children who are vulnerable because of neglect, abandonment, abuse or other difficult circumstances. Participants are expected to exchange experiences and identify practices that could improve the delivery of child protection services.
Dedicated technical sessions will examine the implementation of the Act across different States and Union Territories. Representatives from Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Delhi, Gujarat, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and West Bengal are scheduled to share their experiences and perspectives on the challenges faced by their respective jurisdictions.
Another important focus will be the development of child-friendly justice mechanisms and the strengthening of coordination among judicial institutions, government departments, welfare authorities and other stakeholders. Effective cooperation among these institutions is essential to ensure that children receive timely assistance, appropriate legal protection and access to rehabilitation services.
The consultation is scheduled to conclude on October 11 with a valedictory session featuring remarks by Milen Kidane, UNICEF India’s Chief of Child Protection, and a special address by Anil Malik, Secretary of the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development. Justice J.B. Pardiwala, Supreme Court judge and member of the Juvenile Justice Committee, is scheduled to deliver the closing remarks.
The two-day exercise is expected to help establish priorities for the next decade of juvenile justice reform in India. Its broader objective is to strengthen implementation of the existing legal framework, improve institutional accountability and ensure that children receive care, protection, dignity and meaningful access to justice.
The consultation does not itself amend the Juvenile Justice Act. Instead, it provides a national platform for reviewing the law’s implementation, sharing experiences and identifying practical measures that could improve the functioning of the country’s juvenile justice and child protection systems in the years ahead.
