The Tamilnadu Prison Department is striving to convert prisons in the state not only as reformatory institutions but as educational institutions. Out of 15,000 prison inmates serving their sentences in all 9 Central Prisons in the state a good 6,000 are pursuing educational opportunities including Under Graduate, Post Graduate and Ph.D. programmes, said C. Sylendra Babu, ADGP of Prisons.
Launching a tree planting campaign in the central prison complex Coimbatore, where in 10,000 saplings would be planted in many phases by the jail inmates, ADGP said that the prisons department has started an Industrial Training Institute in Tiruchy Central Prison, and trades such as mechanical, civil, instrumentation and sewing are been taught to jail inmates.
The Coimbatore Central Jail which was started 1872, has now over 1720 prisoners now and there is a separate wing to house women prisoners, as well. About 2,000 sapling would be planted in the first phase which would be taken care by the prison inmates regularly.
"The vocational training thus offered would help them become successful entrepreneurs once they are released from the prison aiding them start afresh", Sylendra Babu said.
The modernization of textile mill in the prison complex has been taken up and completed, he said. The khaki uniforms produced from the mill are being supplied to the uniformed forces including State police, prison and Fire service personnel from the mil.