While the authorised capacity of prisons in Maharashtra remained stagnant from 2013-14 to 2017-18, the inmate population of prisons registered 18% growth from 27,883 to 32,810. The total number of prisoners as on March 2018 was 37% more than the authorised capacity of the prisons, revealed the CAG report on Home Department which was presented in the Assembly on Tuesday.
In nine Central Prison and Correctional Centres (CP&CC), the overcrowding of prisoners had been consistently increasing from 125% in 2013-14 to 155% of capacity in 2017-18. In District Prison and Correctional Centres Class-I, the inmates population ranged between 112% to 129% in the above mentioned period.
“Similarly, in case of District Prison and Correctional Centres Class-II, no new prisons were constructed nor any efforts were made by the department to accommodate the excess inmates which ranged between 100 to 113% of capacity,” the report said.
The report has revealed that female prisons too have seen an increase of 18% in 2017-18. In case of District Prison and Correctional Centres Class-III the occupancy ranged between 75% and 118% during the above period. The report also observed that of the 102 sub-jails in tehsils across the State with a capacity to accommodate 1,670 prisoners, only 54 sub-jails were functioning.
