Lucknow: The state government of UP had proposed cow shelters to house in the jails of Uttar Pradesh which are already 69% overcrowded and 33% understaffed.
According to 2015 prison statistics, available with the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), the above-mentioned figures are in comparison to the national averages. The capacity of jails across UP is 49,434, but they hold 88,747 inmates, reported HT.
Does country have the manpower to manage prison, prisoners and cows?
“We have the manpower and most jails have adequate land to set up gaushalas. Naini Jail in Allahabad already has a gaushala,” minister of state for jails Jai Kumar Singh had said of government plans for jail gaushalas. “We are looking at the possibility of starting gaushalas in other jails. Our plan is to run them with a little grant from the government and utilise the assistance from social workers and citizens.”
There is already a shortage of staff in jails as per the provided data.
High number of undertrials in UP
If compared number wise, UP had the highest number of undertrials (62,669), followed by Bihar (23,424) and Maharashtra (21,667), according to 2015 NCRB data.
In addition to this, human rights activists have often raised the subject of the living conditions of prisoners in jails.
Since 2013, the Supreme Court has been hearing a Suo Motu case involving inhuman conditions in 1,382 prisons in India. In this case, the bench comprising of justices Madan B Lokur and RK Agrawal issued directives to all states in February, as The Wire reported on April 11, 2016.