Meet India’s only woman incharge of a men’s prison

Anju Mangla heads jail no. 7 of Tihar prisons. The jail is meant for 900 adolescent prisoners.

Among the nine jails in Tihar, the country’s largest prison, jail number 7 is different.

Anju Mangla is the head of Jail No. 7 in Tihar Jail. The jail is meant for adolescent prisoners. (Handout)

One, it is for ‘adolescent prisoners only ‘– aged between 18 and 21; secondly, this is the first and the only men’s jail headed by a woman superintendent.

Officer Anju Mangla is heading the prison for the past 6 months. Mangla’s mission is to connect with the young prisoners and ensure that their time in jail does not affect their future.

“This is a big responsibility given by my superiors. Because the inmates in jail number 7 are young. It is important that we talk to them and ensure they do not feel lost in life. Some of them were here because of adverse circumstances. I talk to them every day hoping that when they are released, they go out as better human beings,” said Mangla.

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Recently, the inmates of jail 7 performed a play with the inmates holding a moot parliament. “We helped them understand how the Parliament functions and how democracy works. They were shy but prepared well for their roles and done wonderfully well,” said Mangla.

An officer of the 2007 batch, Mangla was heading the women’s prison in jail 6. In jail 7,she is in charge of around 900 prisoners.