In appalling revelations, throwing more light on the unholy nexus between the drug peddlers and the Punjab Police, the State’s Jail Department on Monday claimed that at least 50 jail officials, including Jail Superintendents, have been found guilty of smuggling drugs in various prisons in the past two years.
Out of these 50 jail officials, 10 have been dismissed, while the disciplinary action was under process against the remaining 40.
The revelations were made by the State Additional Director General Police (Prison) Rajpal Meena. “In last two years, about 50 jail officials were found guilty of supplying drugs in various jails. Ten of these officials have been dismissed and disciplinary action is under process for the remaining 40,” he said.
He added that even some of Superintendents of Jail are also under scanner.
Meena said that the Jail Department is determined to check the menace and alleged inflow of drugs in prisons by initiating preventive measures. “The respective jail authorities have so far shifted 100 suspected inmates to other jails for indulging in drug smuggling into the prison premises,” he said.
The ADG said that to prevent incidents of jail break, and smuggling of drugs and mobile phones into the prisons, the department has deployed an additional force of 824 security personnel, including 498 Punjab Home Guards and 220 Punjab Police staff.
As many as 658 ex-servicemen have also been deployed for frisking of visitors and jail staff at the outer gates of the jails, he said, adding that baggage scanners have also been installed at Amritsar Central Jail, Kapurthala Modern Jail, at Faridkot, Nabha and Sangrur jail.The department has also put up eight drug de-addiction centres at Amritsar, ludhiana,
Ferozepur, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Faridkot and Bathinda jails where about 14,357 inmates have so far been successfully treated.