Furniture made by Model Jail inmates in Chandigarh. (Express Photo by Kamleshwar Singh)
As many as 85 inmates of the Model Burail Jail, Chandigarh, are burning midnight oil at their carpentry workshop to complete a bulk order of furniture from an educational institute. The workload is so much that the jail authorities are unable to entertain individual customers. Infamous for its 2004 jailbreak, the Model Jail is now earning a name for the furniture made by its inmates. There is a long waiting list for the furniture, which includes a whole range from Le Corbusier-style chairs to office tables. The 85 convicts, undergoing rigorous imprisonment are engaged in making the furniture under supervision of a specially-hired expert.
Opening of a special shopping complex in November 2016 to display the furniture as well as food items, has given a boost to the sales, a senior jail official said. “We have had to turn down a number of furniture orders due to the workload. Currently, we have a bulk order from an educational institute and all the 85 inmates are busy with it,” he said.
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“Many people also come to see the furniture on display, but we are not in a position to make them for individual customers. There’s a long waiting list. We only take bulk orders from educational institutions,” said Kumar.
Naresh Kumar, the caretaker of the shopping complex, said the inmates engaged in the bakery make snacks like samosas and a range of sweets that are in high demand among visitors who come to meet their relatives in the jail. The prison inmates also make souvenirs for government functions.
The price of furniture items depend on the kind of wood. According to sources, wood of khair, cheer and sisham is used for making the furniture.
So successful has the outlet been that the UT prison department is contemplating two more shops in Sector 22 and perhaps an online store in future. “We will have two shops for showcasing the products of Model Burail Jail in the busy Sector 22 market shortly. The products will include furniture, candles, herbal colours and clothes. Though the shops were allotted to the prisons department in 2010, I recently took the matter up with the Union Territory administration and tenders were floated for renovating them. Beside this, we are also planning to introduce an online portal for the jail products,” IG (Prisons) O P Mishra concluded.