20000301

BD prisons

overcrowded

DHAKA: Prisons around Bangladesh have turned into hell due to crisis of accommodation as prisoners now sleep in shifts and are being denied of their basic necessities.

There are 63 prisons in Bangladesh, including 9 central jails, located in equal number of districts. The total number of accommodation capacity of these jails is 21,407. But the number of the prisoners stood at 59,124 as on February 1 this year.

This number rose up to 63,200 in December last, the highest in the history of Bangladesh.

The Dhaka Central Jail, the largest detention centre of the country, has an accommodation capacity of 2,632 persons but as on February 21, the number was 8,008.

Records show that on December 31, 1995, the inmates were 44 thousands and it rose to 54 thousand on January 1996, the highest during BNP period.

During the Awami League period, the number of the prisoners increased mainly due to large scale arrests of BNP activists allegedly on false criminal charges. Secondly, the administration discouraged bails to accused persons who were normally released on bail.

According to the sources, due to overcrowding, the inmates are facing acute shortage of accommodation and other related problems. Due to the infra-structural deficiency and logistic support, the jail inmates are now leading sub-human lives so far as the question of food, sleeping, washing and toilet facilities are concerned.ÑAPP