The plea also raised concerns over lack of canteen facilities in most of the courts causing no separate eating areas for women and said they would skip lunch.

The NGO further said that there was a dearth of clean washrooms and changing rooms for women in courts and there was a need for a creche facility and feeding rooms to support women advocates.

The PIL also sought allocation of separate parking spaces, lockers and drinking water facilities for women lawyers and also raised concerns over absence of CCTV cameras in court premises.

While there are some toilets in the bar rooms, the premises of the lawyers’ association, everyone does not have access to these washrooms.

Women lawyers and court associates have been demanding at least two public toilets on both ends of each floor to make it convenient for the women at the top court in the state.

“Before any specific directions are issued, the current position, the problems faced and where intervention is required, need to be studied and placed on record by way of a Report. This initiative will have to be carried out in all the Districts in Maharashtra. At present, we restrict this exercise to the Courts in the District Headquarters. Subsequently, it can be extended to Taluka Courts. As regards the Courts in the District Headquarters are concerned, a Committee needs to be constituted to study the problems,” the bench noted in its order.

The HC directed the PDJ of every district to constitute said panel within a period of two weeks and the panel shall examine  infrastructural issues  and prepare a report on specific issues in respect of concerned Court complexes, the shortfalls in the current infrastructures and suggestions. The report shall be submitted before the Registrar General of HC, who will place the same before the bench during next hearing on August 9.