LAHORE, July 22: More than 150 prisoners, who have completed their sentences but not paid their fines, are being released from the camp jail on Friday.

The initiative has been taken by the Punjab home department on the directives of Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi to lessen crowding in the prisons.

The chief minister will preside over the ceremony when the prisoners, including women and children who had served their sentences ranging from one to five years, will be set at liberty.

Home Secretary Hassan Wasim Afzal said these prisoners had not been able to pay their fines. "Their fines amounting to Rs4 million have been paid by the NGOs enlisted by the home department," he said.

During the past two years, he said, around 44,164 prisoners had been released from different jails in the province.

He said 30 jails in the province had a capacity of 17,000, but 51,000 captives were actually being housed in these prisons." To lessen overcrowding, he said, three new jails in Layyah, Bhakkar and Pakpattan with a capacity between 800 to 1,000 will be completed during the current financial year."-APP