PESHAWAR
Chief Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry on Wednesday said that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was taking pragmatic steps to ensure welfare of jail inmates and complete reforms agenda for prisoners in letter and spirit.
He expressed these views while co-chairing a review meeting with Federal Ombudsperson Ejaz Ahmad Qureshi on prison reforms in KP.
The meeting was attended by Additional Chief Secretary Home Department, Advocate General, Provincial Ombudsman, Director General Prosecution, Inspector General Prisons and others concerned Officials, said an official statement.
Additional Chief Secretary Home Abid Majeed briefed the forum and said that virtual visiting points have been set up in all central and district jails of the province to facilitate jail inmates to communicate with their relatives.
As part of jail reforms, a model room has been established in District Jail Mansehra for the convenience of inmates of meetings, he said and added that the same facilitation would be extended to other prisons of the province.
Medical clinics have also been set up in 18 prisons with the support of a private organization for the treatment of prisoners where necessary medical facilities are provided.
In the briefing, it was informed that seven meetings of the Provincial Supervisory Committee have been held to review the facilities in the prisons, while the Provincial and District Supervisory Committees have made 18 and 156 visits to different prisons respectively.
The meeting was informed that minor children and women are being kept separately from other prisoners and they are being provided all necessary facilities.
Federal Ombudsperson Ejaz Ahmed Qureshi expressed his satisfaction over the steps taken by the provincial government for jail inmates. He said that efforts should be taken to make the jails of the province more facilitated and reformed at par with international standards.
On this occasion, CS-KP Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry said that reforms in prisons are among the priorities of the provincial government.
Prisoners are given free education and vocational training to make them useful citizens, which is yielding positive results, he said.
Later, Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry also presented the products made by the prisoners in various prisons of KP to Federal Ombudsperson Ijaz Ahmad Qureshi.
