The escape of 17 prisoners from Theni sub-jail has brought Tamil Nadu’s prison administration under scrutiny, exposing a decades-old manpower crunch amid overcrowding across several prisons. With 15% of sanctioned posts vacant and the department’s authorised staff strength reportedly unchanged for more than three decades, prison personnel say security is being stretched even as inmate numbers rise.
The prisons department has a sanctioned strength of 5,489 personnel to manage 125 institutions, including nine central prisons, five special prisons for women and 12 district jails. These institutions have a combined authorised capacity of 24,342 inmates, but several are housing prisoners beyond their permissible limits.
“Seniors also rope in personnel for official works and drivers for senior officials,” says a source in the Prison HQ. Personnel say the shortage was compounded by staff being deployed to supervise prisoners’ run industries, freedom bazaars, petrol bunks, stores and canteens, leaving fewer hands available to guard inmates.