Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government plans to construct a new central jail on the outskirts of the capital city on the lines of the Tihar Jail. According to sources, construction of the proposed correctional facility will start very soon.
A senior official in the state Home (Jails) department said 91 acres of land have been identified and a blueprint has been prepared for the project. The existing Special Jail in Bhubaneswar, located in the Jharpada area of the city, will also be renamed ‘Central Jail-Bhubaneswar’.
Once the special jail is upgraded, it will have the capacity to accommodate up to 3,000 inmates at a time. Currently, it can accommodate 991 detainees at a time.
The new correctional facility that will come up on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar will have a special cell for transgender inmates. In addition, it will have an ultra-modern 24×7 hospital for the inmates and staff. A special outpost will be set up near the jail.
A vocational unit on the jail premises will train the inmates on weaving gamchha (towel), blankets, and coir mats among other things. This will be the largest jail in Odisha and will have all the basic amenities available in the Tihar correctional facility.
The land identified for the proposed central jail is located in between the Mahatma Gandhi Academy of Prisons and Correctional Services at Chhatabar and the open-air jail at Jamujhari of Bhubaneswar. About 45 acres of the land will be used for the construction of the jail, while the remaining 46 acres for the construction of staff quarters.
