Punjab: Security threat increasing due to entry of phones and drugs in jails
Punjab: Rapid urbanisation and the growing number of residential and commercial units around the Central Jail have posed a security threat as miscreants can easily throw mobile phones and packets containing drugs inside the premises. In many cases, it has been found that inmates and relatives of prisoners are responsible for throwing these contraband items from nearby roads and buildings. The state’s decision to sell the vacant land around the jail under the “Optimum Utilisation of Vacant Government Land” (OUVGL) scheme has further aggravated the issue. Following this, the Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority (PUDA) auctioned the surrounding land for commercial purposes, inadvertently compromising the security of the jail.
However, a good thing is that the seizure of mobile phones has come down significantly this year due to the enhanced security arrangements. While 683 phones were seized last year, only 467 phones have been recovered so far this year. This decline is in line with the trend of mobile phone seizures – 437 were recovered in 2022, 270 in 2021, 130 in 2020 and 70 in 2019. In 2023, an investigation prompted by the Punjab and Haryana High Court led to the arrest of nine jail officials after more than 43,000 calls were made using two mobile phones from within the jail. Despite stringent security measures, mobile phones and other contraband continue to find their way into the jail. This ongoing case suggests that there may be involvement of insiders. Jail officials have been accused of supplying mobile phones and narcotics to prisoners.
It is worth mentioning that in February last year, the counter intelligence wing of the Punjab Police arrested a jail warden for allegedly supplying drugs to prisoners, including notorious gangsters. In November 2022, a deputy superintendent was arrested for providing mobiles and drugs to criminals in exchange for money, while in August 2022, the Special Task Force (STF) arrested a jail doctor on similar charges. In February 2014, the then chief minister Parkash Singh Badal had announced a plan to shift the central jail to the outskirts of the city at an estimated cost of Rs 150 crore. However, the project has been stalled due to change of power and lack of adequate funds. A 44-acre plot was earmarked near village Khai Fame on Ferozepur-Fazilka road for the new jail and the government had also approved the proposal for its construction, but there was no further progress.
