Delhi Prisons tightens parcel delivery rules

Delhi Prisons has implemented a new SOP for parcel inspections, ensuring all inmates can receive packages with stricter security and audit measures.

The Delhi Prisons has issued a fresh standard operating procedure (SOP) mandating stricter inspection and audit of all parcels sent to inmates, while also directing that no prisoner can be denied the facility except for recorded security reasons.

The rules will apply across Tihar, Rohini and Mandoli jails (HT)

The June order, approved by Director General (Prisons), extends the right to receive authorised parcels from family members or legal counsel to all prisoners –- including undertrials and convicts –- without discrimination.

“All parcels must be received at the gate by the duty officer or Central Public Relation Office (CPRO), not below the rank of assistant superintendent, and opened in the presence of an officer not below the rank of deputy superintendent and, where possible, the inmate,” the order states.

The rules will apply across Tihar, Rohini and Mandoli jails. Before this, jail officials followed the Jail Manual 2018, which lacked clarity on who would receive and inspect packages. Inmates were also not allowed at the time of inspection. The manual allowed superintendents to withhold any article “for any sufficient reason”, leading to frequent disputes.

Under the new guidelines, packages will be received and inspected by three officials. A detailed inventory of every parcel must be maintained in the prisoner’s property register. Any delay or rejection must be recorded in writing by the jail superintendent, citing “specific security reasons”.

Further, parcels containing tobacco, narcotics, weapons, currency or unauthorised electronic devices will be confiscated immediately, with action under the Prisons Act. “Where contraband is detected in parcels delivered in person, the sender’s signature must be obtained. Parcels received by post are exempt,” the order read.

Weekly audits of the parcel register by the Welfare Officer have been mandated to ensure no category of prisoners is systematically denied the facility. Authorities have also been instructed to screen suspicious parcels using X-ray scanners, as against the older guidelines.

The prison headquarters warned that any deviation by staff would be viewed seriously. The directions have been issued to all superintendents for immediate compliance.