FAISALABAD, Oct 8: Over 50,000 prisoners in 30 major jails across the Punjab have been completing their terms under the worst conditions mainly owing to overcrowding. The 54,879 captives, including 1,080 women and 6,733 condemned prisoners, are experiencing the worst days of their lives, according to data gleaned by Dawn. The actual capacity of these prisons is not more than 17,637 — showing a record 211 per cent overcrowding.

Worse still, around 1,080 women are living in dark and dingy cells.

The Borstal and Juvenile Jail, Bahawalpur, is the only prison in the province, which has less number of inmates than its official capacity. Some 190 minor prisoners are confined to the jail, which can accommodate 395.

More than 2,600 condemned prisoners are waiting in the prisons across the province for a decision on their appeals by various courts or the president for years.

Such a high number of people languishing in jails is a cause of concern for those at the helm and a stigma on the face of non-government organizations working for the rights of prisoners.

The situation in the barracks and death cells is worsening by the day, but the authorities concerned are playing the role of a silent spectator.

According to the official record, as many as 12,562 convicted prisoners — 255 women among them — are confined to the jails while 35,602 are those who are awaiting verdicts in their cases in various courts or bail orders. On the death row are 6,733 condemned prisoners, thanks to the unavailability of required facilities and shortage of barracks and cells.

There are another 4,456 prisoners (including 127 women) in the Central Jail, Lahore, which has a capacity of 1,043. The Gujranwala Jail has 3,626 captives against the capacity of 560, the Sahiwal Central Jail 3,952 against the capacity of 1,184, Kasur district jail 1,567 against the capacity of 396.

The Lahore district jail is also overcrowded, as it has 3,348 prisoners against its capacity of 994. Around 2,255 inmates are languishing in the Sheikhupura district jail, which can accommodate hardly 322 inmates.

The situation is no better in other jails in that the Sialkot district jail has 2,453 against its lodging capacity of 662, Rawalpindi Central jail 5,404 against its capacity of 1,894, Attock district jail 748 prisoners against the capacity of 539, Gujrat District Jail 1,375 prisoners against capacity of 366. The Jhelum District Jail has 669 captives, though it cannot accommodate more than 270. The Mandi Bahauddin district jail has 1,085 prisoners against its capacity of 127, Chakwal sub-jail 190 against the capacity of 142, Faisalabad Central Jail 2,707 prisoners against a capacity of 604. Similarly, the Borstal and Juvenile Jail, Faisalabad, has 256 minor prisoners against its capacity of 224.

Around 2,150 prisoners are there in Mianwali central jail having a capacity of 1,021. As many as 2,272 prisoners are confined to the Faisalabad district jail against its capacity of 659, Jhang district jail 2,436 prisoners against capacity of 758, Sargodha district jail 1,797 prisoners against capacity of 368, Shahpur district jail 766 against its capacity of 164.

Also overcrowded are the Multan Central Jail, which is currently accommodating 3,288 captives against its capacity of, Bahawalpur central jail 2,496 against capacity of 1,343, Dera Ghazi Khan central jail 920 prisoners against capacity of 462, Bahawalnagar district jail 540 against capacity of 347, Multan district jail 1,910 prisoners against the capacity of 567.

The Muzaffargarh district jail has 731 prisoners against its capacity of 87, Rahim Yar Khan district jail 747 against its capacity of 247, Rajanpur district jail 305 against its capacity of 96.

Legal circles point out that the slow adjudication process in the country is the major cause of overcrowding in the prisons because a large number of captives have to wait for years together to get a decision. The upward trend in lawlessness and crime graph is equally contributing to the menace.

Owing to multifarious problems, a large number of captives are suffering from traumatic conditions and bouts of depression, besides being bogged down by diseases such as asthma, tuberculosis, etc. There are inadequate treatment arrangements.

A lack of facilities, including meals provision, adds to their worries. Prisoners also have complaints that they are allowed by the jail staff to take walk only once in a day and that, too, not far from their cells. Jail rules allow them to take a walk twice a day.

The detention of many of these prisoners away from their home towns makes their contact with their families extremely difficult. There is no proper legal assistance available to those who cannot afford a lawyer.

Sources in the jail department claim that four to eight prisoners are put together in one cell of eight by 12 feet, actually meant for one person. In several jails, the number exceeds 10.

On an average, six prisoners are kept in one death cell in the Punjab jails. Ironically, there are many unallotted death cells.