Have notified board of visitors for Delhi jails: Delhi govt tells HC

New Delhi: The Delhi government on Tuesday informed the Delhi High Court that a board of visitors — meant to give feedback on the standard of facilities in Delhi jails — has been notified.

A bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela was hearing a suo motu case pertaining to problems plaguing jails in the national capital.

The high court had granted a time till Tuesday to the Delhi government to complete the exercise. The counsel representing the Delhi government said that a notification constituting six such boards in line with the Delhi Prisons Rules was issued on October 14.

The board provides feedback to prison authorities with respect to the standard of basic facilities to be maintained in jail, including health, hygiene and security.

The authorities were further tasked by the high court to fill up vacancies in medical, para-medical and other posts in jail hospitals within 16 weeks.

“Jails are overcrowded. The jail capacity is 100, but there are about 200 people. So, the sanctioned (strength of the) required staff has to be met. All existing vacancies must be filled,” the bench said on Tuesday.

Advocate Ajay Verma, who is representing an intervenor in the matter, submitted that there several vacancies in the medical and the para-medical posts in Tihar Jail.

Advocate Anuj Aggarwal, appearing for the Delhi government, assured that all the vacancies would be filled as expeditiously as possible.

The court had on October 1 granted time to the Delhi government to notify the board, directing the home secretary to be personally present if the same was not done.

The notification, dated October 14, appointed an official as well as non-official members to the board of visitors for Tihar, Rohini and Mandoli prison complexes.

While the official visitors include judicial and Delhi government officials, the non-official visitors include social workers and mental health professionals.