LAHORE: Inspector General Prisons Punjab Mian Farooq Nazeer on Sunday said the department had took various steps from January 2012 to March 2016 for improving administrative system, carrying out development works and bringing about reforms in jails of the province.
Talking to APP here, the IG Prisons said a Vigilance Cell was set up at the Prisons Headquarters in Lahore and a Complaint Cell was formed at the IG Prisons Office to resolve issues related to prisoners and their visitors.
The Vigilance Cell was assigned various tasks including stopping the illegal use of mobile phones by inmates, and keeping a strict check on bringing of contrabands and illicit items inside the jails by prisoners, he said.
The IG said the Cell staff members were directed to gather information and data about vigilance and system at 32 jails in the province and submitting a report to the IG Prisons office as well as officials concerned on daily basis, so that corrective measures could be adopted on time.
The IG said and he himself and other senior officers conducted 476 surprise visits to jails from 2012 to 2015 in this regard.
During these raids on jails in Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi and Multan regions, a total of 8,198 mobile phones, 2,032 SIMs, and 2,020 phone chargers were recovered from inmates he said and added from Lahore region jails, 3,502 illegal mobile phones, 1,144 SIMs, and 926 phone chargers were recovered. From Faisalabad region jails, 1,944 mobile phones, 375 SIMs, and 488 chargers were recovered, while in Rawalpindi region jails, inmates were found in illegal possession of 1,305 mobile phones, 308 SIMs and 258 chargers. Also, in Multan regions, 1,447 mobile phones, 205 SIMs, and 348 phone chargers were recovered from prisoners.
The IG said he himself listened to complaints regularly at the Complaint Cell and ordered addressing those on the spot.
He said the jail superintendents had been directed to meet the complainants for an hour daily and address their complaints.
He said an electric water- cooler had been installed in the visitors’ room, and a Help Line 124, established in all jails of the province for registration of complaints and their redress.
He ordered all jail superintendents to sit in the waiting rooms of jails from 11am to 12 noon daily and listen to people’s complaints and address those issues on the spot.
