Prison Reforms in India

• Recently, National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) released the Prison Statistics India (PSI) 2023 Report.
• The report shows that prisons in India continue to face chronic challenges, which demand urgent governance reforms.

What Are the Major Findings of the PSI 2023 Report?

1. How serious is the undertrial prisoner crisis?
   • 73.5% of all inmates are undertrials.
   • Undertrials are prisoners awaiting trial, not yet convicted by a court.
   • A large undertrial population reflects systemic judicial delays.
2. How severe is the problem of overcrowding in prisons?
   • The national occupancy rate is 120.8%.
   • The occupancy rate means the ratio of inmates to sanctioned prison capacity.
   • Delhi’s occupancy rate is 200.2%.
3. How acute are staff shortages in prisons?
   • 32.78% of sanctioned prison staff posts are vacant.
   • Only 20.6% of prison staff received refresher or specialised training in 2023.
4. What are the issues related to women inmates?
   • There are 35 dedicated women’s jails in India.
   • These jails house over 21,500 women inmates.
   • There are no separate women’s jails in 20 States and UTs.
   • Women constitute 4.1% of total inmates.
   • Women inmates face inadequate gender-sensitive facilities, hygiene issues, and limited medical care.
5. How weak are rehabilitation efforts for prisoners?
   • Only 2,245 convicted inmates were rehabilitated in 2023.
6. What does the report show about custodial deaths and mental health?
   • There is a rise in unnatural custodial deaths.
   • Most unnatural deaths occur due to suicides, indicating neglected mental health care in prisons.

How Is Prison Governance Structured in India?

1. What is the constitutional status of prisons?
   • Prisons fall under the State List under Entry 4 of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.
   • State Governments and UT Administrations are responsible for the administration of prisons.
2. What role does the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) play?
   • MHA provides guidance and support to States on prison administration.
   • MHA also develops model laws and manuals to modernise prison governance.
3. What were the earlier legal frameworks governing prisons?
   • Prisons were historically governed by the Prisons Act, 1894.
   • State Prison Manuals also governed operational practices at the state level.
4. What is the significance of the Model Prisons and Correctional Services Act, 2023?
   • The Act was prepared by the MHA.
   • The Act serves as a guiding document for States to replace colonial-era laws.
   • The Act incorporates provisions of the Prisoners Act, 1900 and the Transfer of Prisoners Act, 1950.
   • The Act shifts the focus from punitive methods to reformative, rehabilitative, and rights-based corrections.

What Are the Key Judicial Pronouncements Related to Prison Reforms?

1. What did the Supreme Court hold in Suhas Chakma v. Union of India (2024)?
   • The Court recommended establishing open prisons as a solution to overcrowding.
   • Open prisons permit prisoners to live with minimal supervision and no cell confinement.
   • The model promotes rehabilitation and social reintegration.
   • Rajasthan pioneered the open prison model in India.
2. What was decided in Hussainara Khatoon v. State of Bihar (1979)?
   • The Court held that the right to a speedy trial is a fundamental right under Article 21.
   • This judgment resulted in the release of thousands of undertrial prisoners.

What Measures Have Been Taken for Prison Reforms?

1. How have Model Prison Manual and Model Prison Act been revised?
   • The Model Prison Manual 2016 aims to bring uniformity in prison laws across India.
   • MHA amended the Manual and the Model Prisons Act to address caste-based discrimination in prisons.
   • These amendments were made in compliance with the Supreme Court ruling in Sukanya Santha v. Union of India.
2. What is the Support to Poor Prisoners Scheme?
   • The scheme provides financial assistance to States and UTs.
   • It helps poor prisoners who cannot pay fines or bail amounts due to financial constraints.
3. What is the E-Prisons Project?
   • The project digitizes prisoner records through the Prisoner Information Management System (PIMS).
   • The system is developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC).
   • The platform enhances transparency and efficiency in prison management.
4. What is the Modernization of Prison Project?
   • The project aims to upgrade security infrastructure in prisons.
   • It provides modern security equipment and technology to jails.
5. What is the FASTER System of the Supreme Court?
   • FASTER stands for Fast and Secured Transmission of Electronic Records.
   • The system digitally transmits bail and release orders to prisons.
   • It reduces delays in releasing prisoners.
6. What are Undertrial Review Committees (URCs)?
   • URCs operate at the district level.
   • They review cases of undertrials and recommend release or bail.
   • URCs were mandated by the Supreme Court to reduce undertrial burden.

What Are the Recommendations for Strengthening Prison Systems?

1. What principles has the Supreme Court laid down for imprisonment?
   • A person in prison does not become a non-person.
   • A person in prison retains all human rights within the limitations of imprisonment.
   • Suffering inherent in imprisonment must not be aggravated.
2. What has the Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs recommended?
   • Use trackable bracelets for monitoring prisoners released on bail.
   • Renovate colonial-era prisons for heritage preservation and tourism.
   • Create a Prison Development Fund in every State for inmate welfare.
3. What recommendations were made by the Justice A.N. Mulla Committee?
   • Establish an All India Service called the Indian Prisons & Correctional Service.
   • Include after-care, rehabilitation, and probation as integral components of prison administration.
   • Permit press and public access to prisons periodically.
   • Reduce undertrials to bare minimum and separate them from convicts.
4. What suggestions were made by the Justice Amitava Roy Committee?
   • Establish special fast-track courts for petty offences and long-pending cases.
   • Use video conferencing for producing sick and elderly prisoners.
   • Create exclusive women’s prisons and medical wards for women inmates.
   • Develop welfare schemes for transgender inmates.
   • Mandate segregation of undertrials, convicts, and first-time offenders to reduce violence.

What Is the NCRB and What Are Its Key Functions?

• NCRB was established in 1986.
• The establishment was based on recommendations of the Tandon Committee, National Police Commission (1977–1981) and the MHA Task Force (1985).
• NCRB functions under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• The headquarters of NCRB are in New Delhi.
• NCRB acts as a national repository of crime and criminal data.
• It maintains the National Database of Sexual Offenders (NDSO).
• NCRB maintains the National Automated Fingerprint Identification System (NAFIS).
• NCRB is the central nodal agency for Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS).
• NCRB publishes annual reports such as Crime in India, Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India, and Prison Statistics India.

Way Forward

How can speedy justice be ensured?

• Special fast-track courts can reduce pending petty cases.
• Video conferencing should be expanded for producing prisoners virtually.

How can prisons become more inclusive and humane?

• Establish exclusive women’s prisons.
• Create medical wards for female inmates.
• Implement welfare schemes for transgender prisoners.
• Ensure strict segregation of different prisoner categories.

How can technology improve prison governance?

• Expand digital platforms like E-Prisons and FASTER.
• Use trackable devices for supervised release.
• Strengthen data-driven monitoring through NCRB systems.

India’s prison reforms are entering a transformative phase with the Model Prisons and Correctional Services Act, 2023 and progressive judicial interventions.
Prisons must evolve from punitive spaces to reformative institutions.
Human dignity, psychological well-being, and rehabilitation must guide correctional policy.
Empathy-based governance, trained personnel, and strong technological systems can enable safe, secure, and humane prisons that prepare inmates for constructive reintegration into society.