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No space left: Maharashtra jails packed at 144% capacity with undertrials
NCRB data for 2024 paints a grim picture of Maharashtra’s prison system, with thousands of inmates awaiting trial for over five years.
The statistics also show that 1,845 undertrials are languishing in jails across the state for more than five years, with their trials yet to conclude.
With over 80 per cent of its prison population being undertrials, while Maharashtra continues to grapple with severe overcrowding, recording an occupancy rate of 143.9 per cent, as per the recently released Prison Statistics of India, 2024.
The statistics show that as of December 31, 2024, of the 39,003 inmates, 31, 523 are undertrials, or those behind bars while their trials are pending.
The overcrowding is higher in the state’s nine Central Jails with an occupancy rate of 162.8 per cent. Occupancy rate is defined as number of inmates staying in jails against the authorised capacity for 100 inmates. While the occupancy rate has improved from the previous year (2023), which was at 155.3 per cent, it still remains high. The state ranks amongst the highest for prison congestion, trailed by Delhi, Meghalaya, Jammu and Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh.
The statistics also show that 1,845 undertrials are languishing in jails across the state for more than five years, with their trials yet to conclude. This is the second-highest such figure in the country after Uttar Pradesh at 1,984. Those inside jails without a trial for 3-5 years are 3,130 in number.
Women’s prisons
While the occupancy rate national average for women’s jails is 60.5 per cent, Maharashtra has the highest overcrowding with its only separate jail for women in Yerwada, Pune. It houses both undertrials and convicts, seeking an occupancy of 145.8 per cent, with 382 prisoners lodged in a space for 262. The women’s jails also have 38 children, living with their mothers, as permitted by law, till they reach the age of six. The Byculla district jail, which has a women’s wing, has a creche facility for the children of inmates and staffers, outside its premises.
Other infrastructure gaps
The report, released by the National Crime Records Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday, which relies on data provided by the states, also shows that Maharashtra has the second-highest number of vacancies in its correctional staff positions at 97, and also one of the highest ratios of inmates per medical staff, with one medical staff per 520 inmates.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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