CAG finds security lax in Delhi jails

Despite big expenditure on jail security, the Comptroller and Auditor General has criticised jail authorities for laxity in stopping smuggling of banned items into prison premises.

“Control over entry of prohibited items was inadequate, despite incurring huge expenditure on security items such as CCTVs,” the CAG report for a period of five years said.

In the second phase starting September 2009, the jail authority had set aside Rs 2.81 crore for installation of 233 CCTV cameras at Tihar and Rohini jails. However, the CAG said work was still in progress as of March 2015.

In the first phase, 258 cameras were installed at a cost of Rs 2.63 crore. Taking a dig at the unsatisfactory performance of mobile phone jammers installed in jails, the CAG said mobile phones were working even in the vicinity of these devices.

The Delhi government had procured 32 phone jammers in 10 jails of Delhi at Rs 5.81 crore during 2008-14 from Bharat Electronics Limited.

The CAG pulled up the jail authorities for not producing prisoners through video conferencing (VC) system despite court orders. According to a government estimate, the use of VC system can save Rs 4.50 crore a year.

The shortage of guarding staff at jails is another issue featured in the report.
“The ratio between guarding staff and prisoners was 1:11 to 1:14 as per the sanctioned strength and 1:16 to 1:21 as per actual men in position, against the ideal ratio of 1:6,” the report said.

Jails in the city are grossly overcrowded as there were 14,209 prisoners against the capacity of 6,250, according to the CAG. Proposals for new jails at Narela, Baprola and Ghitorni could not materialise due to delay in or non-acquisition of land.

Another jarring finding of the CAG is that 146 deaths in the city’s prisons were reported over the period of five years due to illness, suicide, attack by fellow inmates and accidents.

“Due to shortage of doctors, medical staff and laboratory facilities, prisoners were referred to outside hospitals on 93,224 occasions during 2009-14, out of which, 77,232 were only for OPD treatment,” the CAG report says.