Taking immediate action, Home minister Narottam Mishra issued orders for suspending the Jailor of a sub-jail in Raisen district in Madhya Pradesh following 63 prisoners and three warders were tested positive for Covid-19 on Monday. “After receiving the report from Raisen, I have asked the DG to suspend Jailor Vinay Jandelwal who has been found amiss in Covid-19 infection case”, Home minister Narottam Mishra told the media on Tuesday.
Total 39 infected prisoners have been shifted to Vidisha medical college and remaining ones are under treatment at Covid-19 care centre in the jail premises, said the Minister adding from now on no prisoner will be allowed inside the jail unless a corona test is carried out on him /her. Till then the inmate will be lodged inside special cells which will be meant to keep such prisoners.
At Bareli jail as well, quarantine cells have been set up to keep the Covid-19 prisoners.
The administration in Raisen had went into tizzy after 67 persons –64 inmates and three jail guards were found Covid-19 positive on Monday. After cough and cold symptoms, the administration had collected samples of prisoners and guards on Sunday evening and the test report received on Monday evening pronounced 64 prison inmates and three-guards positive for Covid-19.
Soon after the senior officials from police and administration had landed at the sub-jail in Bareli in Raisen. After the jail premises was sanitised, a Covid-19 centre was established inside the jail for treating the prisoners while the guards were sent to Raisen for treatment.
Sources claimed that slackness was evident on the part of jail administration as several fugitive and petty criminals were also lodged inside the sub-jail and several of them were sent inside without medical examination which perhaps triggered the Covid-19 outbreak in the jail.