The jails in bigger states and states with extreme crime rate are facing an unconventional issue of "overcrowding" in their prisons. With the ever increasing crime rate and new methods of crime, the number of prisoners is increasing alarmingly. But, soon this might end if they contact the Telangana state’s prisons department and shed Rs.10,000 a month for each prisoner. In a first of its kind move, the Telangana prisons are now being rented to prisoners from other states.
Though, the offer is not for everyone. The "jail share" scheme is restricted to prisoners who are convicted of non-grievous and non-serious offenses and tenants cannot be under trials or hardcore criminals. This scheme has been adopted from Norway, where they give jails on rents because of their low crime rate. Telangana’s 50 jails can accommodate 6,848 prisoners. At present, there are 6,063 in prison. So, there’s lodging space for around 800 more. Director General of Prisons V.K. Singh said that this scheme could begin next year after making space for a minimum of 2,000 prisoners.
This situation occurred because of the chronic overcrowding which is a result of a slow moving judicial system and years of failure to build new prisons by governments trying rein in expenses. Maharashtra, Karnataka, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh could possibly be the clients for Telangana. They’re planning to charge 10,000 per prisoner a month for their boarding and lodging, security and training in various job skills. The rough estimate by the prison department that the state could gain through this scheme is Rs 25 crore a year. The money would be used as a contribution in making our jails self-reliant.
