PANAJI
Apart from the fact that the recent scuffle between two rival groups of undertrials in the Colvale Central Jail exposed the security system yet again, purported lack of staff manning the blocks has triggered a fresh debate over the government’s seriousness to tackle recurring problems within the premises.
Three inmates “ two of whom were Nigerian nationals “ sustained injuries in a fight that broke out over a petty issue last weekend. Sources said the NDPS block, where the incident occurred, had only one jail guard Mahesh Naik on duty while the rest allegedly failed to report to work.
“Against the sanctioned six jail guards, the NDPS block has four. On Sunday night, the block had three absentees while only one was on duty,” a jail official told The Goan.
When a verbal argument escalated into a fight and no helping hand to Naik, he raised an alarm in a desperate bid to summon his colleagues from other blocks to control the situation.
Sources also state that since many blocks face water shortage, the jail officials are forced to keep some cells unlocked after 6 pm by when the gates have to be mandatorily shut. On Sunday, the inmates were freely roaming till around 8 pm when the fight reached from the first to the ground floor of the NDPS block.
The Prisons Department is conducting an internal inquiry with Mapusa police already investigating a case of rioting against 14 inmates.
The Goan tried to contact Inspector General of Prisons Venancio Furtado to ascertain the report, but he remained unavailable for comment.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, had earlier this month, decided to hand over the entire security management of the Central Jail to the police department. Till now, a separate cadre of jail staff looks after the security of the prison.
Sawant revealed that a non-IPS officer usually appointed as the Inspector General (IG) of Prisons will be replaced by a Superintendent of Police-level officer.
