2 full-body X-ray scanners in Delhi's Tihar jail soon
Highlights
- The scanners will prevent infiltration of illegal articles and gadgets inside the prison premises
- Over three dozen officials at the prison have been booked for extending benefits to prisoners
- Over 7,000 CCTV cameras have also been installed to keep a close watch on the prisoners
The high-security prison in the national capital -- Tihar Jail -- will soon have two X-ray-based human body scanners that can prevent infiltration of illegal articles and gadgets inside the prison premises.
"The process to procure two full-body scanners is underway. The technical evaluation is going on and we may have it in the next three months," Director General (Prisons) Sandeeep Goyal told IANS.
The Tihar Jail is strengthening its security arrangements following the major backlash it has received over its officials being caught providing facilities to the inmates. Over three dozen officials at the prison have been booked by various law enforcement agencies during the past six months for extending benefits to the prisoners in one or the other way.
First, it was the Chandra brothers -- Ajay Chandra and Sanjay Chandra -- former promoters of Unitech and then the multi-millionaire conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar, who got unfettered access to several gadgets inside the prison. "The permission of Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, Mumbai is necessary to purchase the body scanners and they have given their nod for it," the DG said, adding that the technical evaluation takes time but the jail would soon have the equipment.
Apart from body scanners, Goyal informed they have recently installed over 7,000 CCTV cameras in all their jails to keep a close eye on the inmates. "Every jail has at least 500-600 cameras. The feed taken from the CCTVs remains for at least 1 month," the Tihar DG said.
The usage of mobile phones by inmates is a serious concern. It can, however, can be tackled with the usage of apt technology. Goyal said they are installing three new towers inside the jail premises that would confine the mobile signals emanating from the prison.
"All these measures are steps in the right direction and can prove beneficial in future," he added.
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