In a bid to boost the reformation and rehabilitation aspect of prisons, retail petrol outlets will come up on the outer periphery of central jails, which will be operated by the prisoners themselves.
Prisoners with good conduct will be engaged here and receive a monthly salary of ₹7,000 to ₹10,000. The petrol outlets will have customer-centric facilities like loyalty cards and digital payment facilities, in addition to ATMs and a prison bazaar.
The outlets will be established in collaboration with the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) in two phases. In the first phase, they will be set up in the outer premises of central prisons in Vellore, Coimbatore, Palayamkottai, Central Prison- I, Puzhal and Borstal School, Pudukottai within three months.
Six other outlets will be set up later at central prisons in Puzhal on Ambattur road, Salem, Tiruchi on Airport road, Tiruchi on Gandhi Market, Madurai, and Coimbatore on Bharathiar Road.
Reducing recidivism
Ashutosh Shukla, Additional Director General Police (ADGP), prisons said: “The principal objective of the prison department is reformation, rehabilitation and reintegration of prisoners confined in prisons. Numerous steps have been initiated by the prison department to reform the prisoners. Life skills are imparted and the prisoners are engaged in various industrial activities so that they can get gainful employment and integrate with mainstream society. This would help reduce recidivism,” said Mr. Shukla.
The IOC has agreed to extend a rental advance of ₹1.36 crore without interest for the first phase of five retail outlets and another ₹1.64 crore for the second phase of six outlets.
A. Murugesan, DIG prisons, said, “Regular training will be imparted to all people who are involved in operating the outlets.”
Role of bazaars
Prison bazaars function at the boundary of central prison complexes. The products made by the prisoners, such as bakery items, leather shoes, wallets, detergent soap, sanitary napkins, note books and paintings are sold at the bazaars. Other outlets such as food courts are also included in this bazaar.
The cumulative turnover of these bazaars as on September, 2017, was ₹14. 21 crore.
