Prisoners of government apathy

KOCHI: With sub-jails in the state taking in more and more hardcore criminals, including the terror accused, scant regard is being paid to the security system in the jails by the government and Ernakulam is no  exception. The District Jail and four sub-jails have no proper security system and to  make things worse, there is a shortage of wardens too. The majority of jails   have no adequate staff thus making it difficult for the authorities to  control the inmates. The wardens and jail staff do not have proper weapons for self-security too. “We are given a lathi for self-security. Most of the times, we have to guard  the criminal and resist their attempts to attacks us using these lathi’s. Even, the lathi’s are not available at times,” a jail official said.Most of the jails were built several decades ago and have not been properly renovated and are hence overcrowded. The lack of vehicles for transporting the inmates for trials to different  courts have also become a headache for the prison staff. “Often, we have to  rely on buses and trains,” an official said.Of all the sub-jails, it is the Ernakulam sub-jail, situated near the Kerala High Court, and the Mattanchery sub-jail that have the worst security system. The boundary walls of Ernakulam sub-jail is so short. Despite repeated requests to increase its height, no action has been yet taken. There are  about 92 inmates in the prison, but only eight officials to control them. “The shortage of staff is severe here. During night, the entire prison had to be managed with a guard. And, if any of the wardens goes on leave, the  entire functioning of the jail goes haywire,” an official said. Similarly, the Mattanchery jail, located close to the sea, has issues regarding  security. The district jail at Kakkanad, started just three months ago, has not yet become fully operational. The inmates send here are now accommodated at the sub-jails. “The DGP had ordered to shift the prisoners to district jails if their number surpass  the capacity. But this don’t happen as the district jail is not fully operational,” official said.Staff shortage also means that there prisoners are deprived of freedom. The  staff find it difficult to supervise prisoners during their recreation time or when they have visitors.