Going beyond punishment for wrongdoing, the authorities of Rajamahendravaram Central Jail also known as Central Prison Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh, are making earnest efforts to rehabilitate inmates and make them part of the mainstream.

In this effort they are using education as a tool to enable prisoners to get degrees and equip themselves for jobs on being released at the end of their term. This initiative is yielding good results.

Sharing details with the media, S. Raja Rao, the Jail Superintendent said this initiative has been there for quite some time and has been designed systematically and scientifically and tailored to suit the needs of the inmates. He informed that the prisoners are able to pursue their studies along with learning skills.

At present 135 jail inmates are pursuing undergraduate courses, 87 are studying postgraduate courses and 28 are learning basics as per Rao.

Examinations are conducted in the jail premises itself with the teachers and lectures from schools and government colleges conducting classes.

So far, the inmates had done admirably well. Sheikh Azadduien, had secured a gold medal in BA course T. Venkateswara Rao and Subhani, also got gold medals in their degree courses.

To facilitate learning, the jail also houses a well-stocked library that has more than 4,500 books including those on spirituality and personality development.

Historic jail

RCJ is one of India’s major jails. It was a fort that had been built by the Dutch in 1602 and the British converted it into a jail in 1864 and it was later elevated to a Central Jail in 1870.