After input, vigil up at 4 prisons in Punjab

LUDHIANA: The Punjab prisons department has received an input from the Subsidiary Intelligence Bureau, Union ministry of home affairs (MHA), that possible terror attacks could take place at jails in Ludhiana, Bathinda, Ferozepur and Amritsar.
On the basis of this, police have beefed up security at the four facilities, said sources in the department. An officer of the prisons department, who refused to be named, said, "The IB (Intelligence Bureau) had sent an update that Babbar Khalsa International operative Harvinder Singh Rinda is planning a jailbreak to help gangsters in Punjab jails escape. Jails minister Harjot Singh Bains has visited some jails to get a ground report. Required directions were also given," said the officer.
Bains said, "Some jails are on high alert, but telling the reason would not be appropriate. We are ready to tackle any situation." The prisons department also plans to deploy intelligence officers at jails to crack the nexus of gangsters. "We are working on bringing radio frequency technology that detects the location of a mobile," said Bains. He said as per the jail manual, there should be one jail warder for six inmates, but state's prisons had one warder for 1,000 inmates. "The previous governments did not pay attention. Now, about 200 constables will be deployed in the four jails," he said.