New borewell at Kollam jail is a godsend to 300 inmates

Kollam: In what could be a breather to the inmates of District Prison at Thevally in the southern part of Kerala state, the authorities have set up a borewell to meet the water shortage. The inmates were so far barred from taking a shower daily owing to water shortage.

The prisoners at this jail in Kollam district were forced to take bath only once in two or three days as the water in the well and rainwater harvesting tank on the prison premises was insufficient to meet even their basic requirements as well as for cooking. Additional water for the prison was provided by the Corporation authorities.

The borewell set up at a cost of Rs 11 lakh, which was sanctioned from the MLA fund of local legislator M Mukesh, would cater to the needs of the 300-odd prisoners languishing at the district jail, especially when summer is nearing.

Earlier, the authorities had made two unsuccessful attempts to drill a borewell in the compound. However, in the third attempt they could locate water with the technical support of Groundwater Department.

"The jail has a capacity to accommodate 173 persons, but is jam-packed with 300 prisoners. It requires a total of 37,000 litres of water daily for the prisoners and staff. The borewell has found a quick remedy for the water crisis in the prison, “ said District Jail Superintendent.

The borewell was inaugurated by Mukesh, MLA, at a function presided over by Jail DGP R Sreerekha.

Efforts have now begun to set up a new kitchen using the corpus fund of the Prisons Department. The jail authorities expect the construction would get over in a few months after which some of the prisoners would be relocated to the building where the old kitchen is functioning.