Centre writes to states, UTs on measures to improve prisons

The Union Home Ministry has written to prison in-charges in all states and Union Territories (UT), advising them to use the nomenclature "Prisons and Correctional Administration" for Prisons Department, an official statement said on Monday.

In a letter to Principal Secretaries and Home Secretaries in all states, the Home Ministry, referring to resolutions adopted by the 5th National Conference of Heads of Prisons of States and Union Territories on Prison Reforms held in New Delhi on September 29-30, 2016, said jails should have integrated prison, correctional and probation services.

It also said that every state should establish a welfare wing under the Prisons Department, comprising welfare officers, law officers, counsellors and probation officers.

The letter also said that in order to ensure basic uniformity in prison rules and regulations, all states and union territories should revise their existing Prison Manuals by adopting the provisions of Model Prison Manual, 2016, prepared by the Home Ministry, which was circulated to all states and union territories in May 2016.

The suggestions include that prisons be linked with courts through video conferencing for expeditious trial and to save costs in escorting undertrials to the courts, existing vacancies in all ranks of prisons department be filled up expeditiously, a prison e-system be set up that would be integrated with crime and criminal tracking network and systems (CCTNS) as well as e-courts on priority basis.

The Home Ministry has also called for combined training of prison, police, health department and judiciary on undertrial management to be conducted periodically and separate training course on de-radicalisation of prisoners should also be conducted.

The states and UTs have been advised to make concerted efforts to implement these in a time-bound manner.

The statement said these initiatives would "go a long way in alleviating the condition of prison inmates and bring the desired improvement in prison administration".

The state governments and UT administrations have also been requested to intimate the Centre on the updated status of implementation.

--IANS

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