Govt answer to woes of Beur jail: A film festival

Film festivals may be beyond the reach of masses here, but prisoners of one of Bihar’s most troubled jail can soon look forward to one. The inmates of Beur Jail in Patna will be the lucky few, as the Jail Ministry has decided to organise a week-long film festival here in the last week of February with the help of Film Festival authorities in Delhi.

The idea came when State Jail Minister Ashok Choudhary on a trip to Delhi met the Film Festival authorities and was told that a cine gala has never been organised in Bihar. ‘‘I thought, why not organise one in a jail? It will boost the morale of the prisoners and also let them know that the state government is taking some initiatives,’’ the minister said. ‘‘We decided to hold it (the film festival) in Beur because we will be able to monitor it better,’’ he added.

The proposal was approved at a recent meeting of NGOs and government officials. Now, only the movies to be shown during the festival are left to be finalised.