Here, bidis selling for 350, cigarettes 1,000!

AHMEDABAD: Inside the Ahmedabad Central Jail here, the government's massive anti-smoking, quit tobacco campaigns mean little. A booming black market in tobacco products thrives here with prisoners willing to shell out more than 10 times the market rate. While a bundle of bidis costs Rs 20 in the market, in the Sabarmati jail premises they come at a whopping Rs 350. At Rs 1,000, a packet of small size cigarettes can burn a large hole in a prisoner's pocket.

Sources inside the jail said most inmates are hooked to tobacco products and ensuring a steady supply to the jailbirds has become a lucrative source of income for some jail staff. "It is a racket.

Either relatives from outside the jail pay for the stuff or inmates give coupons, received in return for cash from the jail, to jail staff who sneak in bidis and cigarettes," sources said.

Sale of tobacco and tobacco products has been banned in jail premises since 2011 triggering black-marketing. Prior to that, bidis and cigarettes were sold in jail canteens as per Gujarat Prison Rules 38 and 50 (E). The 'kaidi panchayat' had reportedly written to the state home department in 2015 for revival of tobacco sales in jail, but none of the authorities had then confirmed representation from the 'kaidi panchayat'.

Sources say many inmates are even contemplating moving court for a solution.

Sources say the racket is run in a systematic manner. "If a prisoner wants the banned goods, he has to first cough up Rs 10,000. A well-oiled network ensures supply. Some high-profile prisoners in the jail are also involved in the racket," a source said.

MoS (Home) Pradeepsinh Jadeja told TOI he had got know about the smuggling of tobacco in the jail premises. "Norms don't allow sale of tobacco inside the jail premises. We will be conducting a thorough inquiry to verify the tobacco racket allegedly being run in the jail premises," he said.

Director General of Police, Prisons, Mohan Jha said while they were open to suggestions to reduce corruption in the jail, they first needed to identify those involved. "We are doing our level best to reduce corruption not only in Ahmedabad Central Jail, but also in jails across the state. First, screening of prisoners taken out of jail for medical treatment or to produce them in court will be made stricter. We will also keep a hawk's eye on jail staff," Jha said.