CHANDIGARH: Education of children is a serious concern of the woman inmates of Chandigarh Burail Jail. It was revealed in a study conducted by the District Legal Service Authority, Chandighar during 7-day campaign on the condition of women prisoner and fate of their children in Burail jail. The report was released here on Monday by Mr Justice Jaswant Singh, Executive Chairman, SLSA; along with Mr Mahavir Singh, Member Secretary, SLSA and Mr Ashok Kumar, Secretary, DLSA.
There are, at present, 46 woman prisoners in the Burail jail; of these 10 have been punished (six for murder, two under NDPS Act) and 36 are facing trial. Of these, 28 prisoners are married. Woman prisoners those are facing trial included 11 booked under NDPA Act; seven for murder and seven are facing cheating cases.
The study has revealed sorry state of rights and conditions of woman prisoners and status of education of their wards. It found that most of the woman prisoners were worried about the education of their children. One of the prisoner stated that earlier, her children were taken care in Snehyala run by the Chandigarh Administration but now they were sent to their father who was habitual drunker. She wished that her children brought back to Snehyala. One told the campaigners that she did not know whether her children attended the school or not. She wished that after her release from the jail custody of the children be given to her.
One of the women wanted the custody of her grand children after her release from the jail. Some of woman prisoners told the campaigners that they did not know the status of their cases and no advocate assigned to them came to meet them. Besides, some woman inmates complained about their various ailments.
While talking to Member Secretary, SLSA, Mr Mahavir Singh he said that a service centre has been constructed on the premises of the Jail to solve all types of problems faced by woman prisoners. The centre would be inaugurated on January 10. Though there existed a legal aid centre in the jail but it was not accessible to woman prisoners.