Ghaziabad: Uttar Pradesh Jail Minister Balwant Singh Ramoowalia has said the government will soon abolish the 122-year-old practice of using a mesh to separate inmates and their family members during prison visits.
The prisoners will now be able to sit and meet with their families, Ramoowalia told reporters yesterday during a visit to District Jail, Dasna. On the ongoing JNU row, he said several questions need to be answered.
Addressing the inmates there, Ramoowalia said the government is going to increase the number of prison visits which are at present restricted to only twice a week. This step would reduce corruption in prison visits. Doctors will also be able to conduct more health check ups, he said.
The Cabinet Minister said by May 10, phone booths would be set up in all district jails to enable the inmates to talk to their families. “The prisoners will be only allowed to talk to their families using the phones. Strict action would be taken against inmate found talking to anyone else,” he said.
The state government is also going to set up water purifiers in the 29 district jails in the state. His priorities are to improve health checks and strengthen the food-beverages system in the jails, he said. DIG Meerut Zone Vijay Shekhar, Jail Superintendent S P Yadav were among the other officials present during the minister’s visit.