COIMBATORE: The State Government has decided to train the prison staff in commando skills in view of the growing complexities in managing prison security, especially jails that house extremists, V. Balachandran, Additional Director-General of Police (Prisons), said on Thursday.

Mr. Balachandran, who inspected the high-security blocks in the central prison here that houses the extremists involved in the Coimbatore serial blasts case, said 30-35 warders would be sent for training in batches to be imparted, for a week, by the Tamil Nadu Armed Police in Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchi and Chennai. To tide over the shortage of jail security staff, the Government sanctioned 350 second-grade jail warder posts. "They are now undergoing training. Efforts are on to fill the 530 second-grade jail warder posts."

Modern prison complex

Mr. Balachandran said the State Government had sanctioned Rs. 77 crore for building a modern prison complex under the Prison Modernisation Programme. The complex would accommodate 3,000 prisoners, including 500 women. It would be inaugurated shortly.

A number of sub-jails at Srivaikundam, Ramanathapuram, Dindigul, Nagercoil, Gobichettipalayam and Attur were being upgraded as district jails. The district jails would start functioning within the next two to three months. They would accommodate only remand and undertrial prisoners; the central prisons would house convict prisoners. This arrangement would spare the Prison and Police Departments the ordeal of providing armed escorts for these prisoners whenever they were taken to courts.

The introduction of videoconferencing for remand extension at the central prisons helped to reduce the escort requirements by nearly 30 per cent. The prison adalats facilitated the discharge of offenders in petty cases, who confessed to their crimes.

To prevent the families of prisoners bringing banned items into the central prison here feigning ignorance of law, a board in Malayalam would be placed in front of the prison, listing the banned items.

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