Imphal, August 22: Regardless of the risk , the Central Jail at Imphal and the Sajiwa Jail at Khabeisoi have been running on candles and lanterns provided to the inmates due to erratic power supply.

On the other hand, the Government has given approval on promotion of employees working in jails for the last 24 years only recently.

Disclosing this to The Sangai Express, a reliable source from the Jail Department said that due to negligence and lack of serious attention by the Government, the two high security jails under the Home Department have been running with candles and lanterns provided to the inmates due to the erratic power supply.

These two jails have no generator, thus causing lot of inconveniences when there is no electricity, the source informed, adding that this is also very risky from the security point.

As there are no quarters or accommodation arrangement, the staff who need to be on duty round the clock and stay in the jail have to be called from their houses when anything happen in the jail, the source said, adding that the CRPF personnel deployed in the jail for security too have been facing accommodation problem.

Moreover, the source further disclosed that there is also the problem of lack of class rooms, toilet facilities, kitchen, drinking water and sanitation in these two jails and the drinking water being provided to the inmates by the tankers of the jails is not enough.

Giving examples of the Government's negligence of the Jail Department, the source pointed out that till date there has been no full-fledged SP of the jail and the present incumbent is in the capacity of an in-charge.

Most notably, the Government has given approval on the promotion of some of the employees who have been working for the last 24 years only very recently, the source added.

The employees who are going to be promoted after 24 years in service are said to be three LDCs who would be promoted as UDCs and one UDC would be promoted as Accountant.

Subsequent to appointment of a new DGP of Jail and exertion of strong pressures , the Government has approved filling up of 52 posts lying vacant after 19 years.

However, what the Jail Department actually want is creation of 630 posts for the jail administration.

Disclosing further that the post of the Jailor is the only sanctioned post in Sajiwa Jail which has the capacity of housing 720 inmates, the source informed that the total number of staff employed in the jail starting from Mali to SP is 147.As there is lack of security, the service of 60 home guards are also being utilised currently.

The source, however, noted that construction work on a high security jail which can accommodate 200 inmates and staff quarters have been started near Sajiwa Jail as part of the police modernisation measures.

The source went on to inform that even if the inmates are entitled to get all the requirements, the same could not be ensured.

When an inmate has to be taken out Manipur for treatment, the required expenditure is pooled together by the staff.

But it takes a long time from the side of the Government to reimburse the amount.

Even if the price of the commodities in the market has skyrocketed, the rate of the diet money provided for the inmates by the Government is so low that the Department has been facing difficulties in arrangement food.

As against the proposal of the Department to increase the monthly diet amount of an inmate under NSA to Rs 2000, the Government has been paying only Rs 1200 and Rs 700 only for the undertrials and convicts as against the proposal of Rs 1050 .

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