Madurai , Tamil Nadu Minister R Nirmal Kumar on Friday acknowledged “procedural lapses” in the escape of 17 prisoners from Thekkampatti sub-jail and announced plans to strengthen prison security through CCTV surveillance, scanning equipment and automated locking systems.
The state government was in the process of procuring CCTV cameras and scanning machines and increasing the strength of prison personnel. Nine prison guards and officials were suspended over the security lapse. The state government also transferred DGP Sandeep Rai Rathore from the post of head of Prison Services and appointed ADGP K Shankar in his place. A key procedural failure was the alleged violation of standard night-time cell-opening protocols. The minister pointed to deficiencies in security infrastructure, such as emergency alarm systems, automatic locking mechanisms and CCTV coverage.
Measures to upgrade security had been initiated, with separate budgetary allocations made to turn all prisons into high-security facilities, he said. Prison procedures require adequate security personnel to be present before cells housing high-risk or multiple remand prisoners are opened during lock-up hours, sources said. When the inmates allegedly simulated an epileptic seizure to create the impression of a medical emergency, the duty warders opened the cell to provide assistance instead of first alerting the control room and securing adequate reinforcement, the sources said. There was also a significant delay between the escape and the formal alert to the local police, giving the fugitives time to scatter across the district, sources said. These shortcomings had hampered real-time monitoring of incidents and the ability to secure the facility, he said.
Responding to opposition criticism over the October 26 jailbreak, Energy Resources and Law Minister R Nirmal Kumar acknowledged lapses in prison administration and said the government was reviewing security arrangements across prisons.
