Maharashtra has passed the Jail Reforms Bill

The Maharashtra Assembly on Friday (December 20, 2024) passed a bill seeking to reform the prison system in the state.

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The Maharashtra Prisons and Correctional Services Act, 2024, is based on the Model Prisons Bill, 2023 sent by the Center to the states, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis told the House.

A high-security jail and detention center will be set up in Mumbai, while the new jail built in Pune will be a two-storey facility, he added. Plot of land for Mumbai’s new jail has been finalized, CM said.

1,600 accused who are on bail are sitting in the state prisons because they don’t get the money to pay the bail,” he said.

The bill provides for special prisons, open prisons for women, temporary prisons and open prisons. Open jails and open colonies will help in rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-jail inmates after their release, Mr. Fadnavis said. The Bill also provides for the establishment of a ‘Prison and Correctional Prison Force’. A welfare fund for employees and another fund for inmates is also an important feature, the chief minister said.