By IANS
Bhopal : The recent jailbreak incident in neighbouring Chhattisgarh has left the Madhya Pradesh government worried with the jail minister asking police officials to maintain round the clock vigil on jails, especially those in the Maoist affected districts.
“The Madhya Pradesh Jail and Legal Affairs Minister Antar Singh Arya has directed the police officials to strengthen security arrangements in jails and asked jail superintendents, jailers and deputy jailers to remain on alert,” an official said.
“The task of monitoring the security arrangements should be done by senior officers,” Arya told the police team following the incident of jailbreak in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada district, from where 298 prisoners fled this month.
“Officers concerned will be held responsible in case of any laxity in the security arrangements. I have asked division-wise jail monitoring work be entrusted to senior officers posted at the jail headquarters,” Arya told IANS by phone.
Though jails in Madhya Pradesh do not house dreaded criminals, except a few in the Chambal region, extra caution is required in jails mainly in Maoist affected districts like Balaghat, Seoni, Dindori and Sidhi.
There are eight central jails, 21 district jails and 87 sub-jails in the state, which house twice their capacity of 17,000 prisoners.
The jail modernisation work is being carried out under a central government assisted project. As many as 1,000 quarters have been built under the project, while 700 quarters are under construction for jail staff.
Besides, a proposal has also been chalked out as part of the project to construct four district jails in Sehore, Burhanpur, Anuppur and Shivpuri.
Officials said the modernisation of jails would enhance their capacity and improve conditions.