Supreme Court urges states to decide by Sept. 2 on raising judges' retirement age to 62

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court directed state authorities to determine by Sept. 2 if the retirement age for trial court judges should be raised from 60 to 62 years, aligning it with high court judges. The three-judge bench, comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana, preferred an administrative decision over a fresh judicial ruling. They noted that the number of trial judges has doubled since 1992, while high court judges have also increased.

Some states have already shifted the retirement age to 61, but others argued that moving to 62 would create disparity with other civil servants and impose a heavy financial burden. The court rejected those concerns, pointing out that pension payouts are a lump-sum cost and retaining experienced judges is economically sensible. Advocates general were asked to persuade their governments, and high courts were urged to pass full-court resolutions supporting the change.