Awan assures women inmates of legal aid
The Punjab Chief Minister’s Special Assistant on Information Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan listened to the problems of women prisoners and assured them of legal aid and other facilities during a visit to District Jail Sialkot.
“Maharaja Ranjit Singh had built a stable for his horses, which was given the status of District Jail Sialkot in 1863. At present there are 62 death row inmates among 265 sentenced prisoners, including three foreign nationals, 32 women and 10 children. The total number of inmates is 1,872 and two water filtration plants have been installed in the jail,” the special assistant said on the occasion
She said a school had been set up for the education of children and the Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority *(TEVTA) was also providing technical training to the prisoners. Multi-storey barracks are also being constructed at a cost of Rs45 million to increase the capacity of the jail, besides washroom and laundry blocks at a cost of Rs2 million and a 20-bed hospital for drug addicts at a cost of Rs20 million.
The SACM said that anti-coronavirus counters have also been set up in all the jails.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 1st, 2021.