AHMEDABAD: In the holy month of Ramzan, the
Sabarmati Cental Jail — which houses around 3,000 inmates, including
convicts and under-trials — converts 12 of its barracks into ‘Roza Barracks’ for those observing the Ramzan fast. About 45% of the prisoners at the jail are Muslims.
Jail authorities said that the Muslim prisoners are provided jail-cooked food at 3am in the
Roza Barracks. The meal eaten before sunrise by Muslims during Ramzan is called ‘sehri’. “Sehri is prepared separately early in the morning and served with fruits, nuts, and other food items provided by private trusts,” said deputy superintendent of police, Sabarmati Central Jail, V H Dindor. “The same happens when the roza-observing inmates break fast in the evening with iftar. We have given instructions to the jail staff to maintain the timings of sehri and iftar. The food is prepared according to the jail manual.”
Each of the 12 Roza Barracks houses about 40 to 50 Muslim inmates. “We set up a different Roza Barrack for the women inmates,” Dindor said. “There are about 21 women prisoners, including under-trials and convicts, who fast during Ramzan.”
“We have about 60 barracks such as Circle Yard, Shanti Barrack, Hriday Barrack, Veer Bhagat Singh Barrack, Ashan Barrack, Sardar Barrack, Gandhi Barrack, and Mahila (women) Barrack,” Dindor said. “Even prisoners who are housed in the high security yard are provided sehri and iftar from the Roza Barracks.”
Sabarmati jail