SUVAS and the translated judgments: Supreme Court rulings in your own language

SUVAS is a free, AI-assisted translation effort that puts Supreme Court and some High Court judgments into Indian languages, and the translations cost nothing to read. The name stands for Supreme Court Vidhik Anuvaad Software, a machine-assisted tool that works between English and 18 Indian languages. Picture a very fast first-draft translator whose work is then checked by people, with translation committees set up in the High Courts to do the checking. A reply in Parliament in 2024 reported translated Supreme Court judgments running well into the tens of thousands, and some High Courts now publish their own: the Patna High Court opened a dedicated SUVAS Cell portal in July 2025. The Legislative Department also hosts a glossary of legal terms in regional languages. A practical rule: treat a translation as a reading aid, and cite the English original, because the Court's own proceedings run in English.

Citation: 'Rajya Sabha Unstarred Question: Court Proceedings in Regional Languages' (Ministry of Law and Justice, 28 November 2024) https://rsdebate.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/754106/1/PQ_266_28112024_U444_p313_p317.pdf; 'Patna High Court Launches SUVAS Cell Web Portal' (LiveLaw, 10 July 2025) https://www.livelaw.in/amp/news-updates/patna-high-court-launches-dedicated-web-portal-suvas-cell-297073; 'Glossary in Regional Language' (Legislative Department) http://legislative.gov.in/glossary-in-regional-language/ all accessed 18 October 2026.