The state government has decided to install CCTVs at all major jails and has also made a budget allocation for it, principal secretary, home (jails) Megha Gadgil confirmed.
“A proposal for installing CCTVs at nine central jails in the state has been approved and `7.58 crore has been allocated for it,” said Ms Gadgil.
The recent killing of German Bakery bomb blast accused Qateel Siddiqui at Yerawada jail has also given impetus to the project, which will include high-speed vandal-proof cameras and dome cameras in addition to the CCTVs cameras. The proposal has already been sanctioned for major jails at Mumbai (Arthur Road), Thane, Taloja, Pune (Yerawada), Nashik, Aurangabad, Nagpur, Kolhapur and Ahmednagar. The tendering process will soon be completed, the principal secretary added.
Proposal for more connectivity is in the pipeline as the use of video conferencing was found to be very convenient in the trial of 26/11 accused, Ajmal Kasab, said Ms Gadgil.
“Normally, the inmates are kept in separate cells, but during certain times everyday, when they come together, there are chances of some foul play and it’s difficult to stop that manually,” said Ms Gadgil. With the cameras keeping a close watch on places where the inmates socialise or come in contact with each other, the state expects to weed out the troublemakers.