Confined to chaos at Central Jail
| The prisons at Parappana Agrahara is an understaffed behemoth bogged down by umpteen problems | |
 Sunday 21 August 2011 | DECCAN HERALD — Chaotic. That sums up the state of affairs in the prisons across the State, especially the Central Prison in Parappana Agrahara in Bangalore. A reality check could offer a glimpse into what goes on into the prison. You could do that, but only after seeking permission from the prisons topbrass, who will insist that the story be filtered through them!The Additional Director General, Prisons, agrees to allow a visit to the prison, but with certain checks and clauses. The reporter has to show the story before it is published. Negotiating administrative layers such as these, the reality check finally zooms into the prison, and finds a place in decay, crying out for transparency and a big shake up.Are the prison staff mere scapegoats in a bigger game? A clean chit is not easily given, because many agree they too are to be blamed for the current mess. Though the prison department is governed by various Acts, Rules, and Manuals, all these sound outdated and lack transparency. Right from the entry point to the release of a prisoner, nothing seems to be in order. In fact, it is a miracle how the system is still surviving.Consider this: Currently, former minister Katta Subramanya Naidu and his corporator son Jagadish and the ITASCA MD Srinivas included, there are 4,299 inmates (including undertrials) at the Parappana Agrahara central jail. But there are hardly 440 staffers to keep a watch on these inmates round the clock. Practically speaking, there can’t be more than 40 prison staffers on duty for each shift.Right from infrastructure issues, there seems to be a major problem. Acute shortage of staff and funds also haunt the authorities. Mainly, there is a lack of clarity in procedures.Too many things are left to individual discretion and in all, there is too much dependency on many departments (police, prison, health). They are seen interfering in the daily running of the jails, and as a result inmates/convicts have gotten smart enough to cash in on the situation and enjoy their stay behind bars.From the preparation of food to the distribution, medical facility, parole, escorting criminals to courts, visiting rights, and to the time of release, it is a laborious and taxing process, and demands manpower. But the government has turned a Nelson’s eye to the issue. A strong team (Prison minister, home secretary, ADGP&IG, doctors, psychiatrists) who can stay for a minimum of three years and set right the affairs is the need of the hour, say officials on conditions of anonymity. A notorious criminal, talking to Deccan Herald, posed a challenging question: “Till date, not a single ADGP & IG Prisons (IPS officer) ‘in uniform’ has had the guts to walk into the prisons alone and take a head-count. The prison staff is helpless and depends on us (life convicts) who manage the other undertrials and others. The entire setup is stinking and in fact, we pity their plight. We are destined to stay put in the jail and make certain adjustments so that everything is smooth.” A retired senior officer confirmed this. “The government and the higher-ups have made a mockery of themselves while building a new Central Jail. Once they decided to shift the jail from the heart of the city, they should have invited the prison staff, who have off-hand knowledge as to what is required inside the jail. Later, they could have studied the prisons abroad and arrived at a sensible structure. Instead, they built a massive structure, which serves no purpose.” Currently, it is humanly impossible to keep an eye on what’s happening inside the jail. Taking a headcount itself is a daunting task every day. Once the figures are tallied, the jail staff leaps in joy as if it has won a world cup. There is no dining hall, not enough space to accommodate classified inmates (habitual, deadly criminals, Gooda Act, terrorist and others). Around 15 barracks with six dormitories are at the disposal of the officers to provide shelter to the convicts. Even there, there are segregations in the VIP cells. No doctors Sunil, an inmate, recollects a horrifying incident when a criminal started masturbating in front of a female doctor. Likewise, there are several incidences where medical practioneers get fed up of the jail life and request for transfer. Escorting the criminals to the courts is the major problem and despite debates, meetings and propels, the government is unable to arrive at a formula. A former Bellary superintendent recollects how the inmates were rotting and were unable to go to the courts due to the political situation. In 1999, Sonia Gandhi and Sushma Swaraj had locked horns over the Bellary seat. In the melee, the police department were busy in maintaining law and order and refused to escort the inmates to court. Video conferencing facility is available. Yet, in most cases at evidence and other stages, the accused are supposed to be present in the court. Interestingly, when asked as to how mobile phones, ganja, cigarettes, matchbox and other stuff finds their way into the jail, the prison authorities have a standard answer: ‘We are doing our best.’ Another alibi is being ‘short staffed’. They want the government to set up special escort police teams. Years ago, there was a move to shift nearly 200 City Armed Reserve police staff to the prisons department. Later, the then State police chief had found that discarded ‘force’ (drunkards, misconduct and useless) were sent on deputation to the department. The DG&IGP of the day had reversed the order and sent them back to their parent department. Akshaya Patra in jail a failure Organisational Structure As of now, there are more than 100 jails in the state. The Central Prisons, District Prisons, District Head Quarters Sub-jails, Special Sub jails and Taluka Sub-Jails are managed by departmental staff. Out of 70 Taluka sub-jails, 29 under department control and 41 are under Revenue control. History of prisons in Karnataka |
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