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Government hostel in Pune to be converted into temporary prison
Yerawada Central Jail remains under lockdown and bars entry of unauthorised officials and new inmates.
PUNE A government hostel building near Press Colony will be turned into a temporary jail as Yerawada Central Jail remains under lockdown without the entry of unauthorised officials or new inmates, according to officials.
A proposal by Yerawada Jail Superintendent to convert backward class girls (Gunvant) government hostel located near Press Colony in Yerwada was submitted to the collector’s office. On Sunday, the proposal was accepted, according to a document shared by a senior jail official.
The hostel is run by social justice and special assistance department of the state government.
In the second week of April, authorities at Yerawada in Pune; Arthur road and Byculla, in Mumbai, and prisons at Thane and Kalyan had stopped accepting new inmates. Following the development, Sunil Ramanand, additional director general of police, prison, Maharashtra, had issued an order declaring a lockdown in these prisons on April 9.
While the administration of the temporary prison will be taken care off by the jail staff, the security of the facility will be done by Pune city police, according to jail authorities.
UT Pawar, superintendent, Yerawada Central Jail, said, “The new admissions will be kept there. We cannot be sure if they are carriers of Sars-Cov-2 virus which causes the Covid-19 (coronavirus) infection. We have taken this step as a preventive measure, we cannot risk the lives of inmates”
“We, therefore, suggested space and the collector has now granted permission to start the use,” said Pawar.
“There are 16 rooms in the hostel that are expected to hold not more than 100-150 inmates,” according to SP Pawar.
Even though an order by collector Naval Kishore Ram has been issued and the jail authorities have taken possession of the hostel, the operation is yet to begin.
The jail officials will make a representation to the city police authorities and seek police protection to the temporary facility, according to the SP Yerawada Jail.
The launch of the temporary facility is subject to the availability of police protection, according to SP Pawar.
On the other hand, the jail has been releasing under trial prisoners that fit the criteria defined by a high-powered committee to decongest jails in light of Covid-19 pandemic.
Until May 2, 388 under trial inmates from Yerawada Central Jail have been released on personal bond. In the countrywide initiative, a total of 5,105 have been released from 47 major prisons in Maharashtra so far.
