De-addiction centres to come up in Tamil Nadu prisons soon

CHENNAI: The central prisons in Tamil Nadu would soon have de-addiction centres to rehabilitate inmates addicted to substances. The department would take necessary measures to establish the centres shortly.
According to officials, there are around 10,000 inmates, including remand and convicted prisoners, in 14 central prisons across the state. Of these, five are special prisons for women.
Sources in the prison department said that nearly 50% of the inmates in the central prisons were suffering from drug/substance abuse. It has been a challenge to handle such prisoners as they would turn violent, if they do not get what they want. They often inflict injuries and harm themselves. “We will send a proposal to the government, seeking its approval to establish a de-addiction centre in each central prison,” said a senior officer in the department.
The recent violence witnessed in the Madurai Central Prison was the fallout of seizure of contraband (ganja) from the prisoners. “The special team of the department conducted surprise checks and seized ganja from a couple of prisoners, besides stopping the supply channel of the contraband. Irked over it, a group of prisoners instigated the protest a few days ago. A few of them have also inflicted injuries using sharp objects,” said an officer.
Though the department has been keeping track of prisoners falling in such a category and frequently confiscating the contraband from them, there was no proper mechanism to rehabilitate them. However, the authorities have taken cue from the recently held sensitisation programme, organised by the Academy of prisons, highlighting the need for treating the drug abuse disorder among prisoners and decided to establish de-addiction centres.
The superintendents of central prisons have been instructed to segregate the prisoners addicted to drugs/substance, while developing a mechanism to identify such prisoners at the time of their lodging. They would be given the best care and also be extended legal aid under the provision of state legal service authority.
The experts who have been working with the prison department have submitted a set recommendations to prison department to conduct regular programmes for the wardens and prison department personnel to sensitise them in handling the prisoners addicted to drugs./eom/shan/