Centre Approves Strength of Supreme Court Judge Strength to 37.

Introduction

A proposal to augment the power of the judges of the Supreme Court of India has been approved by the Union Cabinet headed by Narendra Modi.

The ratified strength will be 37 judges as opposed to 33 judges and this does not include the Chief Justice of India (CJI).

Currently, a total sanctioned strength of 34 judges including the CJI are present in the Supreme Court. The new plan will increase the total number of 38 including the Chief Justice.

The change will be proposed with the help of the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, 2026.

This is to decrease unresolved cases and to increase the rate at which justice can be delivered.

Why the Increase in Judge Strength Is Important

The number of cases that the Supreme Court of India deals with annually is extremely high.

Over time:

• Litigation has increased
• Issues touching on the constitution have been complicated.
• There has been an increase in public interest cases.

Consequently, the judicial workload has been greatly burdened.

More judges will help:

• Faster hearings
• Faster handling of cases.
• Better bench management
• Reduced workload pressure

This is likely to enhance judicial effectiveness.

Status Quo of Cases on Pending.

One of the biggest challenges to the Indian judiciary is the pending cases.

The Supreme Court deals with:

• Constitutional disputes
• Appeals from High Courts
• Public interest litigation
• Important national matters

Many pending cases impact on the timely justice.

One of the solutions is considered to be the increasing strength of judges.

Amendment Bill, 2026, Bill of the Senate, Number of Judges: Supreme Court.

The new proposal will make amendments to the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956.

The amendment aims to:

• Four other judges are to be added.
• Improve court functioning
• Increase judicial capacity

Once the bill becomes a law in Parliament, the new level of judge strength will be put into effect.

The Supreme Court is based on a constitutional provision.

Article 124 of the Constitution of India dictates the strength of the Supreme Court.