THE PRISON SYSTEM IN

INDIA
UNIT-4
Introduction:

• The oxford English Dictionary defines prison as, “A place properly

arranged and equipped for the reception of persons who by legal
process are committed to it for safe custody while awaiting trial or
punishment”
• In the past, prisons were believed to be places of Captives, where
inmates were held for vengeance and discipline. Initially, it was
assumed that separate cells and imprisonment would improve the
guilty person, but that belief is progressively being replaced as the
administration and experts have recognize from time to time that
prisons have certain limitations.
History of Indian Prisons
• 1. VEDIC PERIOD:-
• The primary objective of discipline during the Vedic and Imperial
periods in India was to prevent criminals from committing crimes
again. The death penalty, hanging, lashing, and flogging were all
accepted means of punishment. The detainees were mistreated,
tormented, and exposed to unimaginable harm
• 2. MEDIEVAL INDIA

• The jail system in medieval India was similar to that of medieval

civilisations. The Quran was considered to be the jurisprudence of the
period. The practice of distinguishing criminality was common among
the period's civilisations. As a rule, crimes were classified into three
groups: sins against God, offenses against the state, and offenses
against private individuals.
• 3. PRE-INDEPENDENCE PRISON REFORM IN INDIA

• The concept of modern prison in India began with the suggestions of TB

Macaulay in 1835.

• In 1838, a committee, The Prison Discipline Committee, Produced a

report recommending an increase in the rigor of treatment while
rejecting all humanitarian measures.
• the recommendations of the Macaulay Committee between 1836-1838.
• Central Prisons were built between 1836 and 1838.
• As a result, India's current prison system is a vestige of British rule.

• Sir Alexander Cardio led the Indian Jail Reforms Committee in 1919-
20, which made recommendations to reform Indian prisons. It was
also suggested that every jail's maximum intake capacity be regulated
based on its structure and form as part of prison reform.
• A commission was formed to provide recommendations for changes
to Indian prisons in 1919-20, and Alexander Cardew served as its
chairman. After reviewing the situation of prisoners around the world,
the commission concluded that institutions should not only have
evolving theories, but also a rehabilitation strategy.
• In its report, the committee stressed the need for a reformative
approach to convicts and condemned the practice of physical
punishment in prison. According to the committee, prisoners should
be put to constructive use. A key part of the Committee's
recommendations was the importance of post-release rehabilitation
programs for freed convicts.
POST-INDEPENDENCE PRISON
REFORM IN INDIA
• The Mulla Committee

• India's government established the All India Committee on Jail

Reforms, headed by Justice.
• Anand Narain Mulla, in 1980-83. Committee members' main objective
was to evaluate laws, rules, and regulations. The Mulla Committee
published its report in 1983.
• Aiming to achieve parity in the legal structure governing jail
management between states and union territories, All India Jail
Committee seeks to implement a comprehensive jail management
law. In its report, the National Prison Commission called for a
permanent council to reform India's jails and safeguard society while
rehabilitating offenders.
The Justice Krishna Iyer Committee
• Justice Krishna Iyer, a committee of justices appointed by the
government of India in 1987, was tasked with carrying out a study on
the conditions of women prisoners in India. There was a
recommendation for the induction of more women in the police
force, as they play a special role in tackling women and child
offenders.
Administration of Prison System
• In the seventh schedule of the Constitution of India, item 4 of the
state lists deals with the administration of prisons.

• In accordance with the Prisoners Act 1894 and the Prison Manuals
individual state's draft the process of maintaining prisons in the state
State List: item number 4

• Prisons, reformatories, Borstal institutions and other institutions of a

like nature and persons detained therein; arrangements with other
States for the use of prisons and other institutions.
General Issues Concerning Prison Reform
• Mulaqat System,

• The system of Mulaqat, or family gatherings of inmates in prison, should be

treated seriously as it is considered an efficient but underutilised tool of
reformation. Even so, inmates are permitted to meet their near family
members at fixed intermissions, the mulaqat is for a very short period of time
and in an awkward atmosphere.
• Gatherings under the oversight of jail guards are truly humiliating for inmates
as well as guests who require seclusion. The right of inmates to communicate
with and meet with friends, family members, and legal counsel should not be
restricted beyond a certain point.
Vocational Education and Training
• Detainee training is another device that keeps them involved and
would also aid in their recovery after they are released from prison.
There should be a greater emphasis on professional preparation for
prisoners, which will give them significant motivation to find work
after they are released. The goal is to enable them to acquire the
talents and abilities which will allow them to work after they have
been discharged.
Spiritual trainings
• It is widely accepted that the act of yoga and reflection can empower
the detainees to control their brain and furthermore twists the
negative disposition to positive one.
Judicial Pronouncements
• D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal:

• In the case, it was held that the particulars of the arrest should be
communicated to the friend or relative of the accused when he is
detained. In the end, it is entirely evident that by means of this
correspondence, the family or friends of the accused can initiate the
steps to find out what is recorded about the accused, get legal advice,
provide the necessary defense to an remand request, and make the
necessary preparations for bail.
M.H. Wadanrao Hoskot v. State of
Maharashtra : legal Aid
• If a person isn't provided with appropriate legal aid, their human
rights and personal liberties will not be of any use to them if they do
not have access to justice in the event of a gross violation of their
rights. It is no longer charity that provides Legal Aid; it is a legal right.
As Legal Aid emphasizes, justice must be administered properly and
easily accessible. Judiciary has played an instrumental role in defining
and expanding the concept of legal aid
Prem Shankar Shukla v. Delhi
Administration : Handcuffed
• The appellant happened to be an under-trial prisoner in the Tihar Jail.
He was handcuffed while being to be taken from the jail to the
magistrate and back to the prison periodically with regards to certain
cases that were pending against him. The Supreme Court held that
handcuffs must be used only as a last resort and should not be
practiced unless there is a warrant
Contagion of Covid 19 Virus in Prisons
SMWP(C) 1/2020
• The Supreme Court (SC) took suo motu cognizance of the pandemic
and noted that prison occupancy rates were 117.6%. Prison
occupancy rates were as high as 176.5% in Uttar Pradesh. A very high
rate of ingress and egress was observed for prisoners, staff, visitors,
and lawyers. As a result, the SC ruled that prisons were "fertile
breeding grounds" for Covid-19.
• The Central Government provides assistance to the states to improve
security in prisons, for the repair and renovation of old prisons,
medical facilities, development of borstal schools, facilities to
women offenders, vocational training, modernization of prison
industries, training to prison personnel, and for the creation of high
security enclosures.
Supreme Court:-
• The Supreme Court of India, in its judgements on various aspects of
prison administration, has laid down 3 broad principles regarding
imprisonment and custody.

• 1. First, a person in prison does not become a non-person.

• 2. Second, a person in prison is entitled to all human rights within the
limitations of imprisonment.
• 3. Third, there is no justification for aggravating the suffering already
inherent in the process of incarceration.
NCRB:National Crime Records Bureau

• According to 2021 NCRB data:- Indian prison population had 77%

under trials, while only 22% convicts, with almost half of the under
trials in prison for more than 2 years.

• Out of 5,54,000 prisoners, 4,27,000 were awaiting trial, out of which

24,033 under trials were already in jail for three to five years. The
occupancy rate of prisons was 130%
• The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) is an Indian government agency responsible for
collecting and analyzing crime data as defined by the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Special
and Local Laws (SLL). NCRB is headquartered in New Delhi and is part of the Ministry of
Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India.
• Ramphal Pawar (IPS) is current Director of National Crime Record Bureau.

• NCRB was set-up in 1986 to function as a repository of information on crime and criminals
so as to assist the investigators in linking crime to the perpetrators.
• It was set up based on the recommendation of the Task force, 1985 and National Police
Commission, 1977 by merging the Directorate of Coordination and Police Computer (DCPC),
Inter State Criminals Data Branch of CBI and Central Finger Print Bureau of CBI. Earlier
Statistical Branch of Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) was also merged
with NCRB, but was later de-merged.
Types of prisons

• Prison establishments in India exist at three levels—

• the taluka level,
• district level, and
• central (sometimes called zonal/range) level.
• The jails in these levels are called Sub Jails, District Jails, and Central Jails
respectively.
• In general, the infrastructure, security, and prisoner facilities such as medical,
educational and rehabilitation are progressively better from Sub jail to Central Jail.
• The other types of jail establishments are Women Jails, Borstal Schools, Open Jails
and Special Jails.
Number of jails and available capacity across India

Type Number Available capacity

Central Jails 137 1,65,750

District Jails 394 1,47,003

Sub Jails 732 45,569

Women Jails 20 5,197

Borstal Schools 20 1,630

Open Jails 64 5,412

Special Jails 42 10,145

Other Jails 3 170

Total 1,412 3,80,876

Central jail

• The criteria for a jail to be categorised as a Central Jail varies from

state to state. However, the common feature observed throughout
India is that prisoners sentenced to imprisonment for a long period
(more than two years) are confined in the Central Jails, which have
larger capacity in comparison to other jails. These jails also have
rehabilitation facilities.
• Delhi has the highest number of 16 Central Jails followed by Madhya
Pradesh having 11,
• Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu with 9 each.
• Karnataka has 8 Central Jails, Gujarat has 4 Central Prisons.

• Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Dadra

and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu & Lakshadweep do not have any
Central Jails.
 Central Jails
State Number

Delhi 16

Madhya Pradesh 11

Maharashtra 9

Punjab 9

Rajasthan 9

Tamil Nadu 9

Karnataka 8

Gujarat 4

Total 75
District jail

• District jails serve as the main prisons in states and union territories
where there are no Central Jails.
District Jails
State Number
UP 57
Madhya Pradesh 39
Bihar 31
Maharashtra 28
Rajasthan 24
Assam 22
Karnataka 19
Jharkhand 17
Haryana 16
Gujarat 11
Kerala 11
West Bengal 12
Chhattisgarh 11
J&k 10
Nagaland 10
Total 318
Sub jail

• Sub jails are smaller institutions situated at a sub-divisional level in the

States.

• 9 states have reported comparatively higher number of sub-jails

revealing a well-organized prison set-up even at lower formation. 

• These states are Maharashtra (100), Andhra Pradesh (99), Tamil Nadu

(96), Madhya Pradesh (72), Karnataka (70), Odisha (73), Rajasthan
(60), Telangana and West Bengal (33 each). Odisha had the highest
capacity of inmates in various Sub-Jails
• 7 states or union territories have no sub-jails, namely Arunachal
Pradesh, Haryana, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim,
Chandigarh and Delhi
Open jail

• Open jails are minimum security prisons. Only convicted prisoners

with good behavior satisfying certain norms prescribed in the prison
rules are admitted in open jails. Minimum security is kept in such
prisons and prisoners are engaged in agricultural activities.
• P. T. Chacko Home minister of Kerala Introduced First Open Jail In
India Nettukaltheri Near Neyyar Trivandrum on 28 August 1962.
• 17 states have functioning open jails in their jurisdiction.
• Rajasthan reported the highest number of 29 open jails. There are no
open jails in any of the union territories at the end of 2015.
Special jail

• Special jails are maximum security prisons for the confinement of a

particular class or particular classes of prisoners. Prisoners housed in
special jails are generally been convicted of offences such as terrorism,
violent crimes, habitual offenders, serious violations of prison discipline,
and inmates showing tendencies towards violence and aggression.

• Kerala has the highest number of special jails—16. Provision for keeping
female prisoners in these special jails is available in Tamil Nadu, West
Bengal, Gujarat, Kerala, Assam, Karnataka and Maharashtra.
Women’s jail

• Women's jails are prisons that exclusively house female prisoners. Women's
jails may exist at the sub-divisional, district and central (zone/range) level.

• There were 20 Women's Jails across India with a total capacity of 5,197 and
an occupancy rate of 60.1% as on 31 December 2016.
• Due to the limited capacity of Women's Jails, most female prisoners are
housed at other types of jails.
• As on 31 December 2016, around 83.12% of all female prisoners in India
were incarcerated at jails other than a Women's Jail. Maharashtra has 5
women's jails. Kerala and Tamil Nadu each have 3 women's jails.
Borstal School

• Borstal Schools are a type of youth detention centre and are used
exclusively for the imprisonment of minors or juveniles. The primary
objective of Borstal Schools is to ensure care, welfare and
rehabilitation of young offenders in an environment suitable for
children and keep them away from contaminating atmosphere of the
prison. The juveniles in conflict with law detained in Borstal Schools
are provided various vocational training and education with the help
of trained teachers.
• Nine States namely, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala,
Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Telangana have
borstal schools in their respective jurisdictions.
• Tamil Nadu had the highest capacity for keeping 678 inmates.

• Himachal Pradesh and Kerala are the only states that have the
capacity to lodge female inmates in 2 of their Borstal Schools.

• There are no borstal schools in any of the UTs at the end of 2015.
Other jails

• Jails that do not fall into the categories discussed above, fall under the
category of Other Jails. Three states—Karnataka, Kerala and
Maharashtra—have 1 other jail each in their jurisdiction. No other
state or union territory has any other jail at the end of 2016
Budget

• All states and union territories in India had a combined sanctioned budget
of ₹54.6338 billion (US$680 million) in 2016-17, an increase of 5.9% over the
previous fiscal, for prison related expenditure. Uttar Pradesh alone accounted
for ₹12.72 billion (US$160 million) of the total budget.

• Prison expenditure is broadly categorised as Plan Expenditure and Non-Plan

Expenditure. Expenditure on specific planned activities under the Five Year Plan
is termed as Plan Expenditure. Expenditure made for meeting day-to-day
expenses and running establishments like payment of salaries, wages, rent, etc.
come under the Non-Plan Expenditure. Non-Plan Expenditure may also include
activities  for development of existing infrastructure and bringing about
improvements in the prisons.
• Expenditure on prison inmates is categorised as Food, Clothing,
Medical, Vocational/Educational facilities, Welfare and Other
expenses. Food expenses account for 65% of the total expenditure on
prison inmates.
Prison population
No. of Inmates

Year Male Female Total Occupancy Rate

2009       122.80%

2010       115.10%

2011 3,56,902 16,024 3,72,926 112.10%

2012 3,68,184 16,951 3,85,135 112.20%

2013 3,93,804 18,188 4,11,992 118.40%

2014 4,00,855 17,681 4,18,536 117.40%

2015 4,01,789 17,834 4,19,623 114.40%

2016 4,14,505 18,498 4,33,003 113.70%

2017     4,50,696 115.10%

2018 4,46,842 19,242 4,66,084 117.60%

Types of offences

• Among convicts, the highest number of inmates are serving sentences for convictions
of murder (51.86%), rape (7.66%), offences under the NDPS Act (5.73%), attempted
murder (5.30%), dowry deaths (3.88%), and theft (2.84%) as on 31 December 2016.
• The overwhelming majority of convicts, around 87.82%, are convicted of offences
under the Indian Penal Code, while 12.05% are convicted under special and local
laws. Among under trials, the highest number of inmates are being held under
charges of murder (22.14%), rape (8.71%), attempted murder (8.03%), theft (8.94%),
offences under the NDPS Act (5.88%), and dowry deaths (4.43%) as on 31 December
2016.
• Around 80.73% of under trials are charged with offences under the Indian Penal Code,
while 19.25% are charged with violating special and local laws.[4] About 2.8% of
convicts admitted to jails across India in 2016 were repeat offenders.