Golden Blossoms (write-up on Nature)

To self-actualize, one writes different things... 

Written in one vacation-time, this write-up was published under Spice of life, Hindustan Times, Chandigarh, Dec. 6, 2011                                                

Golden Blossoms

                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

When I was a teenager in the ‘80s, the yellow blossoms of the amaltas caught my attention during a visit to Chandigarh. As our rickshaw threaded its way through the road dividing Sector 22 and 23, I watched spell-bound as the yellow blossoms smiled back tree after tree. The lush grove on both sides of the street put up such a captivating sight that I wished I could pen down their beauty. The sight remained etched in my mind and on returning home in Hoshiarpur, I couldn’t stop singing praises of the amaltas.

 My grandfather was quick to notice my fondness for the blossoms. A nature-lover as he was, he procured a small sampling and asked the gardener to plant it. Amaltas was not commonly grown in those days. My joy knew no bounds as I dreamt of the sapling’s transformation into golden blossom tree! But to my disappointment, the gardener did not share my enthusiasm. He told my grandfather that this was going to be a big tree, we did not have a suitable place to plant it. I thought the house was spacious enough, but the gardener rejected every corner I suggested for the amaltas. My grandfather sensed my anxiety and thankfully put his foot down. The gardener was told to plant the amaltas near the gate. Not to be cowed down, the pushy gardener came up with another excuse. He said that when the plant would grow, it would tear apart the boundary wall of our neighbor, a retired colonel and a world war like situation can emerge. Nevertheless, much to my relief, my grandfather rejected the warning and sternly asked him to plant the tree. I tasted victory finally!

            I waited for years for the sapling to grow into a tree. One day, a few bunches of yellow bead- like blossoms appeared. I watched them in awe. My grandfather would also stand beside and admire the flowers. It was a dream fulfilled. I must admit that the gardener was right to an extent for the tree did crack the neighbour’s wall as it grew. But I don’t know how grandfather handled the situation as no crack appeared in our relations with the neighbour.

            Grandfather died as I grew out of my teens. As destiny would have it, I landed a job in Punjabi University Patiala in the ‘90s; I was pleasantly surprised to find lanes on the campus lined with amaltas trees. I took a liking for the place instantly as I read a poem by Bhai Veer Singh on a board hung from an amaltas tree, eulogizing its beauty. My love for the amaltas has not faded with time. Whenever I go home on a visit, I get misty-eyed as I look at the tree that still stands majestically, and firmly, near our gate.   

SC women in Panchayats in Sangrur, Punjab

·        Another important publication in this area :

•      Renu and Meenakshi's joint paper entitled Role Perception of the Scheduled Caste Women Leaders of Panchayati Raj Institutions: A Case Study of Sangrur District (Punjab) published in Journal of Government and Political Studies, Dept. of Political Science, Punjabi University, Patiala, Vol. XXXV, Issue No. 2, September, 2010, pp. 23-34.

           (ISSN 0251-3056) 

Image of Scheduled Caste Women in Panchayati Raj: Punjab Experience

NOTE: This joint paper was published in a Journal published by P. G. Department of Public Administration, Utkal University, Vani Vihar, Bhubaneswar, Orrisa. ISSN: 2249-3360. It can be cited as -

Renu and Meenakshi, Image of Scheduled Caste Women in Panchayati Raj : Punjab Experience, Public Administration Review, Vol. no. 13, 2012, pp. 36-43.

Image of Scheduled Caste Women in Panchayati Raj:

Punjab Experience

Dr. Renu

Associate Professor & Head, 

Department of Public Administration, 

Punjabi University, Patiala.

Mrs. Meenakshi

 Ph.D. Research Scholar, 

Department of Public Administration, 

Punjabi University, Patiala.

Scheduled Caste (SC) women have been the victims of social and physical discrimination since ages in India. Scheduled Castes women have been subjected to discrimination in the caste- ridden Indian society and a gender bias within their own Scheduled Caste community. This two-fold oppression and exploitation drove them to the periphery. But this is only one side of the story. It is worth mentioning an equally important aspect of Scheduled Caste women, i.e. their enormous resilience with which they continued to carry on their lives, the lives of their families, the struggle of their community, despite insurmountable hardships and hurdles. After Independence, efforts were made to extend benefits of development to them not by merely putting them at the receiving ends but by making them partner in the development process by associating them in local bodies. At rural level, Panchayati Raj (PR) in India made an attempt to ensure their participation either through co-option or through the direct election. In this process, the passage of 73^rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 with a mandatory clause for reservation for SC women in PRIs can rightly be hailed as a giant leap towards facilitating SC women’s participation in grassroots politics.  It aimed at empowering SC women to become important partners in the decision-making process of local affairs in the modern India. Punjab, like other states, also gave reservation to SC women in seats at all the three tiers of Panchayati Raj institutions.

Scheduled Caste Women and Panchayati Raj in India: A Historical Perspective

Before discussing the entry of SC women in PR in India and particularly the Punjab state in the historical perspective, it is imperative to understand that the term Scheduled Caste. In the last more than 60 years, the term Scheduled Caste has become the official identifier of the erstwhile untouchables or the exterior caste. The expression Scheduled Caste was first coined by the Simon Commission and embodied in the Government of India Act 1935. In 1936 for the first time, the Government of British India published a list of Scheduled Castes.¹ Scheduled Castes can be taken as such castes, races or tribes or parts or groups which are treated as outcastes, exterior castes, depressed castes, untouchables, Harijans and Dalits. The other name of Scheduled Castes as Dalit is derived from the Sanskrit root 'Dal' which means to break or crack etc. and ‘Dalit’ means broken, split and downtrodden. The Scheduled Castes are castes identified by the President of India under Article 341 of the Constitution and are put under a Schedule. Article 341 of our Constitution says, "The President may with respect to any State or Union Territory, after consultation with the Governor thereof, by public notification, specify the castes, races or tribes or parts or groups within castes, races or tribes which shall for the purpose of this Constitution be deemed to be Scheduled Castes in relation to that State or Union Territory, as the case may be.”

            In India, women have been deprived from availing various kinds of opportunities and advantages by our traditional/orthodox society for the past several centuries. Discrimination against women is commonly observed in the opportunities of socio-economic development, participation in different activities and development programmes and availing the opportunities of various facilities, which are directly and indirectly linked with bringing improvement in the life style and the quality of life because of prevailing several social and cultural backwardness.²

            In the Pre-Vedic period and Vedic period, women occupied superior place as there was equality, education, no purdah system, they could marry a man of their choice. But later on, the condition of women became worse. Hindu Dharma Shastras and customs had already paved the way for their complete subordination in male dominated society. Women were deprived of property rights; they were supposed to worship their husband as God, and dowry and Sati system misguided the dignity and freedom of the women.³

Since there can be no true democracy, no true people's participation in governance and development without the equal participation of women with men in all spheres of life and level of decision making, demand for women's franchise was initiated in 1917 when a deputation of Indian women led by Sarojini Naidu presented to the British Parliament a demand for the enfranchisement of women on the basis of equality of men. As a result of in 1919, under the Montaque-Chelmsford Reforms, about 10 lakh women obtained the voting rights. However, women exercised their franchise for the first time only in 1932. Till 1926, no women ever got into Legislature. Muthulakshmi Reddy of Madras, a dedicated social worker, was the first woman to be nominated to the Madras Legislative Council and she was also elected as the Deputy Chairperson of the Council.⁴ In 1931, women voiced demand for universal adult franchise but are said to have opposed reservation, nomination or cooption for women.

After India became independent, equal voting rights were given to men and women. However, it was disappointing that the PRIs did not get that place of prime importance in the newly made Constitution of India as was expected by Indian people from their own govt. after a long Bitish rule. On the insistence of Mahatma Gandhi, Panchayats found mention in the Constitution of India but that too, only in the Directive Principles of State Policy as Article 40. It states, "The state shall take steps to organise village Panchayats and to endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self government.⁵

            The inclusion of the village communities in the state legislature led to the states framing the Panchayat Act(s) to start rural development programmes e.g. the Firka Development Scheme Madras 1946, the Etawa Pilot Project, Uttar Pradesh 1948, the Sarvodaya Scheme 1948-49 Bombay. In 1952, the Government of India introduced the Community Development Programmes (CDP) and National Extension Service Programme (NESP) in 1953. But the CDP and NESP considerably failed, especially in mobilising the rural masses to participate in the programme. As a result, the govt. appointed the Balwant Rai Mehta committee (1957) in order to identify the drawbacks and the weaknesses of CDP and NESP and to suggest remedial measures. The committee recommended new structure for the Panchayats: A three tier PR system with Gram Panchayats (GPs) at the village level, Panchayat Samitis (PSs) at the block level and Zila Parishad (ZPs) at the district level. Rajasthan was the first state to adopt the new Panchayati Raj in 1959 followed by Karnataka and Orissa.⁶ The Balwant Rai Mehta Committee (1957) considered the conditions of rural women at length and felt that they should be assisted to find ways to increase their incomes and improve the condition of their children. The Committee was particular that women should find representation in the rural political institutions. It recommended the co-option of women members to the PRIs.⁷ The Committee made provision for the co-option of two women members and one member each from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

Further, Ashok Mehta team (1977) suggested regarding participation of women in elections that two women securing the highest number of votes among the women candidates in the election could take the seat reserved for them. Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Bengal became the first states in the country to introduce the policy of reservation for women in PRIs. They provided for 25% reservation for women at Zila Parishad and Mandal Panchayat level. Later on, the National Perspective Plan in 1988 recommended 30% reservation for women at local bodies. The Committee recommendation was finally materialized when through 64^th Constitution Amendment Bill in 1989 when the then Prime Minister Sh. Rajiv Gandhi made a provision for 30% reservation of seats for women in Panchayats at all the three levels in this Bill. But this historic attempt to give a constitutional status to PRIs failed as this 64^th Amendment Bill could not be passed in the Parliament. The issue was again taken up by V.P Singh Govt. who introduced 72^nd Amendment Bill but Bill was not even discussed and meanwhile the govt. collapsed.

But in 1991, the then PM Sh. P.V. Narasimha Rao again introduced the Bill in the Lok Sabha as 73^rd Constitutional Amendment and significantly, despite having a minority govt. at the centre, Rao could get this bill passed in 1993. It can be termed as a momentous golden moment in the history of Panchayati Raj in independent India because for the first time, PRIs were given a constitutional status. It is important to bring spotlight on how this 73^rd Amendment Act, 1992 affected the women in general and SC women in particular in PR.

 In the context of women functionaries of PRIs, a major change that has taken place since the passage of the 73^rd Constitutional Amendment Act 1992 is political representation of women, including SC women through reservation. Under Article 243D of the 73^rd Constitutional Amendment Act 1992, seats are now reserved for general category women and women belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes as given below:

1. Seats shall be reserved for -

            a) the Scheduled Castes; and

            b) the Scheduled Tribes

in every Panchayat and the number of seats so reserved shall bear, as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in that Panchayat as the population of the Scheduled Castes in the Panchayat area or of the Scheduled Tribes in that Panchayat area bears to the total population of that area and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in Panchayat.

2. Not less than one-third of the total number of seats reserved under clause (1) shall be reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes or, as the case may be, the Scheduled Tribes.

2. Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the scheduled castes and the scheduled tribes) of the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in every Panchayat shall be reserved for women and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in Panchayat.
3. The offices of Chairpersons in the Panchayat at the village or any other level shall be reserved for the Scheduled castes, the scheduled tribes and women in such manner as the legislature of a state may, by law, provide…

As a result, about one million women entered in the first elections of Panchayats after 73^rd Constitutional Amendment Act. About 40% of the elected women represented the marginalized sections. About 70% women representatives were illiterate and most of them had no previous political experience.⁸ It is indeed heartening to know that the central government has recently cleared a constitutional amendment to reserve 50% of seats for women at all tiers of Panchayats. The proposed amendment will increase the reservation for women to 50% in Zila Parishads, Panchayat Samitis and Gram Panchayats at the district, block and village levels respectively. Article 243D of the Constitution that currently provides for at least 33% reservation for women in Panchayats will be amended to provide for the enhanced reservation. With the passage of this amendment, every second member of India’s village Panchayats will be a woman. Already five states – Bihar, Chattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand – have 50% reservation for women. Rajasthan has also announced 50% reservation to be implemented in the Panchayat elections in early 2010.

At present, women account for 36.87% of the total 28.1 lakh elected Panchayat representatives. On implementation of raised reservation the number of elected women’s representatives at the grassroots level is expected to rise to more than 14 lakhs.⁹ Thanks to the reservation provided to them, the SC women were able to join PRIs as leaders in a big way in the post-73^rd Amendment Act, 1992 period and this is definitely a encouraging development in the context of position of SC women in PRIs who have been suffering at the lowest rung of caste hierarchy in India.

SC Women in PRIs: Punjab Experience

            As Punjab is the state which has the maximum proportion of SC population in the whole of India (above 28%), it is worth examining the position of SC women in Panchayati Raj System in this state.  Punjab has three regions: Malwa, Doaba and Majha. Out of these, the largest concentration of SCs is in Doaba region. Punjab is considered one of the most prosperous states of India. It is very interesting to note that Punjab’s caste hierarchy is unique in the sense that here at the top of caste hierarcy are Jats and not Brahmins as in other states of India. “Very influence or near absence of Brahminism” has resulted in very less practice of untouchability.¹⁰ However, SCs remained at the lowest level of caste hierarchy and had to put up with exploitation, atrocities and backwardness for long. It is extremely shameful to find manual scavenging still prevalent in the eight districts of a prosperous and fast developing state like Punjab though it has been declared an offence by an act in 1993.¹¹ If we look at the position of SC females, it was no different and in fact, worse due to gender discrimination at home as well as outside. Though the literacy rate in SC females is quite good in Punjab yet the Punjabi society is still very narrow-minded and biased towards females even in general. Female foeticide is a problem with alarming dimensions here. No wonder, one of the worst sex-ratio rates have been reported from Punjab in the whole country according to the Population Census of 2011 also.

In this perspective, the appalling position of the SC women in society can be understood and rising from here, the SC women came to Panchayats also thanks to legislative measures.   Panchayati Raj was introduced with the passing of the Punjab Gram Panchayat Act, 1952. In this Act, there is provision that if no woman is elected as a Panch of any Gram Panchayat, a women member of the Sabha, who is qualified to be so elected, shall be co-opted as a panch by the Panchayat. In this Act of 1952, there are also provisions regarding Scheduled Castes as:

1. Every Gram Panchayat shall have one Panch belonging to SC if their Population is five percent of the Gram Sabha area.
2. Every Gram Panchayat with seven or more panches shall have two panches who are members of SC, if their population is ten percent of the Sabha areas.

Another important legislation came in 1961 in this regard. In the Punjab Panchayat Samitis and Zila Parishads Act, 1961, there is a provision for co-option of two women members if no woman is elected. There is also a provision regarding the co-option of four persons of Scheduled Caste /Scheduled Tribes if no such person is elected.

            But after the 73^rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 was passed; states also passed their respective PR Acts. Punjab also passed the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 according to the provisions of the 73^rd Constitutional Amendment Act 1992. In this Act of 1994, there is a provision for the reservation of seats for women, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes as given below:

1. Not less than one third of the total number of offices reserved for women shall be reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes.
2. Not less than one third (including the number of offices reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes of the total number of offices (to be filled by direct election) in every Gram Panchayat shall be reserved for women.
3. Not less than one third of the total number of offices of Sarpanches in the district shall be reserved for women belonging to Scheduled Castes.

Owing to the reservations given to SC women in PRIs, the SC women have entered into PR as leaders in large numbers after 1994 in Punjab. It is revolutionary for Punjabi rural society and it has remarkably changed the scene in rural Punjab, with SC women from the humble lowest level in caste hierarchy ascending to various top leadership positions in PRIs in a male-dominated society. Though this development brought some positive effects, yet the substantial increase in the numerical strength of SC women leaders in PRIs in the present India did not automatically stopped all discrimination against the SC women in PRIs or society at large.

In general, the participation of women in political life is minimal not only at all India level but also at the state and local level. In India, as in other places, women's political participation in govt. structures, elections and community organisations is hampered by socio-historic forces inherited from Nationalist Movements, current socio-policies, gendered nature of citizenship, education, income, socio-cultural norms, caste.¹²

            When we consider the role of Scheduled Caste women in PRIs, it can be said that in Panchayati Raj, Scheduled Caste women have to face much more discrimination in relation to higher caste women. Scheduled Caste women suffer from triple discrimination that is of caste, class and gender. Over the years, the Dalit women themselves have constructed an identity about their lives and struggles. This identity deals about their multiple roles and problems faced as an individual, in the family, at work places, in the religious sphere and in the Dalit and wider society.¹³ Keeping in view the prevailing caste system and acute economic and social inequalities in the rural areas, it is a challenging task for SC women elected representatives to function effectively. Several studies point out the constraints both institutional as well as societal that impeded further effective participation of dalits. It is shocking and sad as National Commission for SC & ST in its report 1998-1999 observed that neither respect due to the office they hold in PRIs nor the respect due to them as human beings is given to dalits.¹⁴

            Even after reservation and tremendous strides in development, Scheduled Caste women’s role in politics has not made much headway. Though through reservation policies, a large number of SC women have not only been elected to various positions but they have also come to occupy important positions like Sarpanch of Gram Panchayat, Chairperson of Panchayat Samiti and President of Zila Parishad. An analysis of the working of SC women representatives in some of the previous research studies revealed that there are certain factors which discourage women in rural areas to participate effectively as given below:

v  SC women leaders were not able to participate effectively in PRIs due to socio-cultural norms, acute illiteracy, domination by males, lack of awareness etc.¹⁵

v  Mostly women who enter through reservation came with their social and economic disadvantages - mostly non-literate, with little productive assets, largely dependent on wage labour and into a rural society that has fixed places for various castes and gender.¹⁶

v  The SC women leaders have inferiority complex and they hesitate in meeting the higher officials at the district level during the whole period of their tenure.

v  Lower caste women are dummy candidate in the hands of upper caste men.

v  SC women leaders’ workload has been increasing enormously both in their houses and offices. Poverty cannot allow them to lose their daily wages for attending the Panchayat works. Sometimes, they handover their responsibility to someone else and perform their duty towards the family.

v   Panchayat leaders have to maintain forms and accounts. This is not possible particularly for the SC uneducated women to maintain all the forms properly as per rules and procedures.

v  Sharmila Rege examined that the increasing visibility of Dalit women in power structure as Sarpanch, as member of Panchayat and in the new knowledge-making processes has led to an increased backlash against Dalit women. The backlash is expressed through a range of humiliating practices and often culminates in rape or the killing of their kinsmen.¹⁷

Conclusion

            The predominant image of the Dalit women in the present times emerges that of women who have been historically unprivileged but who have entered into the PR system effectively only after the reservation provided to them in the 73^rd Amendment Act, 1992. They still have to rise above the discrimination and deprivation that they have suffered for ages in order to function effectively as leaders of PRIs. It is crystal clear that the political participation of women is not to be viewed in isolation. Structural changes in the formal power institutions, increasing awareness through education, training programmes, economic independence and gender equality are important prerequisites for political participation and empowerment of SC women, because reservation alone cannot transform the world of SC women in rural local govt. or in society. The primary challenge facing SC women in PRIs today, therefore, is to learn to make their participation effective so that they can capitalize on the advantages of the reservation and improve their lot. Though debate on the desirability of reservations continues, some research studies, for instance, one (2005) in the Hoshiarpur district of Punjab (a district in Doaba region with the largest concentration of SCs in Punjab), revealed that more than 70 per cent of the SC women PRI-leaders as well as the male SC PRI-leaders perceived a positive change in the attitude of the people of their area in general towards them after being elected to PRIs and further, their stint with the PRIs inspired political aspirations in majority of the SC women leaders.¹⁸ It speaks volumes about the promising future trends likely to be expected in grassroots democracy in our country despite a long history of subjugation of SC women.

References

1.             Prakash Louis, The Political Sociology of Dalit Assertion, Gyan Publishing House, New Delhi, 2003, pp.143-144.

2.             G.S. Mehta, Participation of Women in the Panchayati Raj System, Kanishka Publishers Distributors, New Delhi, 2002, p.1.

3.             Manas Chakrabarty, Yang and Lahmu Bhulia, “Empowering Indian Women in the New Wake of Globalization”, The Indian Journal of Political Science, Vol. LXVIII, No. 1, January-March 2007, pp.116-117.

4.             A. Thanikodi and M. Sugirtha, “Status of Women in Politics”, The Indian Journal of Political Science, Vol. LXVIII, No. 3, July-September 2007, p.600. 

5.             Pamela Singla, Women’s Participation in Panchayati Raj: Nature and Effectiveness, Rawat Publications, New Delhi, 2007, pp.95-96.

6.             n.2, p.41.

7.             P. Manikyamba, Women in Panchayati Raj Structure, Gyan Publishing House, New Delhi, 1989, p.14.

8.             Nupur Tiwari, “Women in Panchayat Raj”, Indian Journal of Public Administration, Vol. LIV, No. 1,  January-March 2008, p.34.

9.             Bharti Chhibber, “Empowerment of Women – 50 percent Quota in Panchayats a Major Step”, The Tribune, September 2, 2009, p.13.

10.         Harish K. Puri (ed.), “Dalits in Regional Context”, Rawat Publications, Jaipur and New Delhi, 2004, pp. 1-20.

11.         The Tribune, 27^th September, 2012.

12.         Bilkis Vissandjee, Shelly Abdool, Alisha Apale and Sophie Dupere, “Women's Political Participation in Rural India: Discerning Discrepancies through a Gender Lens”, Indian Journal of Gender Studies, 13:3, 2006, p.426.

13.         n.1, pp.130-131.

14.         R. Limbadri, “Grassroots Democracy: The experience of Dalit in PRIs”, Indian Journal of Public Administration, Vol. LIII, No. 4, October-December 2007, p.790.

15.         Renu and Meenakshi, “Role Perception of the Scheduled Caste Women Leaders of Panchayati Raj Institutions: A Case Study of Sangrur District (Punjab)”, Journal of Government and Political Studies, Vol. XXXV, No. 2, September 2010, p. 32.

16.         n. 8, p.35.

17.         n.1, p.16.

18.         Renu, “Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994: An Agent of Social Change,” Journal of Political Science, Vol. VII, No. 1, April 2011,pp. 5-16.

---

Prisons as Sudhar Ghars: A Case Study of Patiala Central Jail

NOTE: 

This joint research paper has been published recently in Journal of Political Science, Vol. XI, No. 2, November 2015, pp. 5-14. 

It will be available online at www.jpsdav.com shortly. 

   Dr. Renu

                                                                                                           Professor & Head

                                                                                                   Dept. of Public Admin.

                                                                                       Punjabi University, Patiala (Pb)

                                                                                            Mrs. Deepika Sharda                                                                                Lecturer of Public Admin.

Public College, Samana (Pb)

In criminal justice system, the correctional component assumes role of critical importance as compared to the other components such as law enforcement, legislation and judiciary. The Constitution of India assigns the custody and correction of criminals to the states and union territories. “Prison, as a formal agency of the Criminal Justice Administration, has a unique role in a democratic society. These are utilized both, for incarceration of convicts as well as for providing custodial care to the under-trials. In India, prisons constitute the largest area of penal administration.”[i] Imprisonment has been the oldest method of dealing with the offenders who were likely to put in danger the order and peace in the society. With the passage of time, the concept of imprisonment as punishment underwent a great change. Nowadays, imprisonment in addition to punishment is also recognized as a means of reformation and rehabilitation of the offender.  This modern concept is the outcome of a number of prison reform movements all over the world which greatly influenced prison administration in India also. Various expert bodies and commissions examined the prison administration in India since Independence and gave recommendations. Though the implementation has yet to match the intent, yet in the wake of heightened interest in area of human rights of prisoners in the present times, the prison administration in India became a subject of an intense debate and scrutiny at various forums as never before. The press, electronic media and human rights groups often raise the subject of reforms in the poor conditions of the prisons which are now considered correctional institutions. Incidents of inhuman treatment, use of third degree methods in jails, sick prison-industries, illegal use of drugs and cell phones, overcrowding of prisons, gang-wars, understaffing, low personnel morale, and inadequate facilities to the prisoners attract the attention of everyone in today's civilized society. It is disturbing that instead of reforming the prisoner, the prisons are increasingly perceived these days as a place of corrupting, dehumanizing and hardening an ordinary criminal who can then pose a threat to the peace of the society.

Prisons as modern correctional institutions/SUDHAR GHARS

It is right that 'Jails' or prisons are penal institutions, housing both prisoners, awaiting trial and prisoners committed to sentences but nowadays; in addition to that, they are driven by a new philosophy emphasizing reformation and rehabilitation.  Jails are not the confinement cells to dehumanize, humiliate and punish the prisoners but they are considered reformatory houses. The object of punishment ought to be nothing else but the destruction of vices in human beings. According to the Reformation Theory of Punishment, a criminal is to be studied like a patient, keeping in view his socio-economic background, to understand the factors leading to his criminality and then an attempt has to be made to reform, treat and rehabilitate the offender. Prisons have to work as hospitals, where such sick people are to be treated. The correctional process aims to reincorporate the offender into the society as normal citizens. A modern correctional institution offers a variety of programs. These include individual or group therapy sessions, scholastic education, trade and vocational training, maintenance work, recreational and social activities and industrial employment[ii]. All these measures help the rehabilitation of the prisoners and help them to earn a legitimate living and be a law-abiding citizen when they return to the society. Religious institutions also have a presence in many prisons with a goal of teaching ethics and instilling a sense of morality in the prisoners. Vipassana meditation helps too. Kiran Bedi as the Inspector General of Tihar prison in 1993 set a brilliant example by bringing fundamental changes reflecting transition from a wooden prison system to a responsive and sensitive prison administration.[iii]

Though prison conditions vary from state to state, India still broadly retains a system set up during the colonial times.  The important acts in this regard are: The Prison Act of 1894, The Prisoners Act of 1900, The Transfer of Prisoners Act of 1950 and for correctional purpose, Reformative Schools Act, 1897, Juvenile Justice Act, 2000 (and its amendment, 2006), Probation of Offenders Act, 1958 and Parole rules of the various State governments etc. are worth mentioning for a kind of humanitarian approach. The Supreme Court and various High Courts in India have repeatedly given guidelines on various issues connected with prisons.[iv]  

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

At present there are eight Central jails in Punjab; namely Central Jail, Patiala, Central Jail, Bathinda, Central Jail, Ferozpur, Central Jail, Gurdaspur, Central Jail, Ludhiana, Central Jail, Kapurthala, Central Jail, Faridkot and Central Jail, Amritsar.[v] These jails with a large capacity are considered the maximum security jails and have rehabilitation facilities. The scope of the present study is limited to the environment obtaining in Central Jail, Patiala. Very old and huge institution, it is situated in Patiala which is a large city in southeastern Punjab in northern India.

OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY

A survey was conducted of the Central Jail, Patiala, now called Sudhar Ghar, Patiala during 2013-15 with an objective to examine whether it is truly functioning as a Sudhar Ghar. With the help of different Interview Schedules and Observation method, 81 jail officials in Patiala Central Jail were covered. Keeping in view a very large number of inmates lodged in the CJ Patiala, a random sample of 253 prisoners was chosen which included male and female, convict and under-trial prisoners.  Observation Method was also used during personal visits to CJ Patiala.

Correctional programs initiated in Central Jail, Patiala

It was in 1980, the Punjab Government, with a view to transform these institutions into reformatory centers, named the jails in the state as Sudhar Ghar[vi]. The philosophy of reformation and rehabilitation of offenders casts upon prisons the responsibility of utilizing the period of imprisonment of offenders for their treatment with a view to modify their behavior to re-socialize them. There are various institutional and non-institutional reformatory measures like parole, furlough, remission system, probational release, gratuity scheme, work in prisons and welfare programs etc are good tools for reformation of prisoners. Further; things necessary for correction and reformation of prisoners are: proper environment, education and cultural education in particular, personal contacts with prisoners, employment and vocational training, scientific classification, borstal institutions, recreational facilities, drug de-addiction, games and system to avoid over-crowding. The Punjab Jail Department has launched a number of programs from time to time, premature release of prisoners, parole and furlough, prisoners' panchayats, probation of offenders technical and vocational training etc. are the programs which aim, in one way or the other, to reform the offenders[vii].

It was found that the following measures have been there in Patiala Sudhar Ghar:

1.      In the Patiala Sudhar Ghar, it was found that free education in collaboration with I.G.N.O.U. and Punjab School Education Board (through Open School system) is being provided to the prisoners. The prisoners can pursue their studies from other Boards and Universities as well, but for that they have to bear the expenses from their own pocket. There is no upper limit on education. Even a prisoner namely Dr. Mandeep Gaur completed his Ph.D. on the topic of "Role of religion in re-socialization of prisoners". It is good as education moulds the personality of a person and helps him to adjust to his social environment. The Model Prison Manual[viii] lays down that a diversified education program aims at developing a better understanding of the duties and obligations of a citizen, improving the attitudes of inmates towards society and encouraging the development of a desire to live a good citizen.

2.      A library for study of prisoners has been provided in the Jail.

3.      Morning prayers for the Jail inmates have been introduced. There are Gurudwara and Temple within the premises of Sudhar Ghar Patiala. Prayer and religion can influence their habits, beliefs and intellect and can compel them for voluntarily changing their social behavior and develop a spirit of forgiveness, cultivation of universal brotherhood, hope etc.

4.      Yoga and P. T. have also been introduced which play good influence on the physical and mental health of the prisoners.

5.       A separate music room has been made available to the prisoners for practice of music.

6.      Cultural activities and congregation etc are being organized on regular basis to give a refreshing break from the monotony of the prison life. Bhangra and Gidha teams of jail inmates have been made, who gave their performances on various occasions. Various festivals are celebrated too.

7.      Jail department is providing the common recreation facilities to the Jail inmates like Television with cable channels was made available to inmates, who could watch it upto 11.00 PM.

8.      In another move, government has started organizing games in the jails for improving the health of prisoners and drug de-addiction purpose as well. Games in the jail have taken form of mini Olympics and government has decided to give relaxation of two months in imprisonment to the prisoners, who perform exceedingly well in these games[ix].  In 2015, Punjab Jail Sports Meet was going to be organized for 3^rd time.

9.      Moral instructions through lectures play healthy influence on the criminal and go a great way in reshaping his emotions which have been ruined, maladjusted and distorted. Some NGOs, philanthropists and social workers visit prisons for inspiring those who have deviated from the path of goodness. The Art of Living courses were organized for the inmates of Patiala Sudhar Ghar.

10.  Human rights awareness camps are organized for awareness of prison inmates from time to time.

11.  Programs for providing training in weaving, beauty parlor work and carpentry etc. have been initiated to prepare the prisoners to  earn their living in future in a dignified way.

12.  A computer lab has been established in Central Jail, Patiala, wherein the prisoners can learn computers for their future source of earnings after release from the Jail.

13.  Government is running a drug de-addiction centre in the Patiala Central Jail, where various methods like counseling sessions, movies and congregations are performed.

14.  Counselors have been deputed to the Jail for stress management of prisoners.

15.  Prisoner Call System has been started in Central Jail, Patiala, wherein the prisoners can make phone calls on any of pre-loaded four phone numbers twice a week so that they can keep in touch with family and desire to return to their normal life. 

CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF SUDHAR GHAR PATIALA   

It was good to see that Central Jail, Patiala has started certain correctional programs as discussed above in addition to the regular Parole, Furlough and Probation etc., but there are certain other conditions to be fulfilled if any jail has to work as a "Sudhar Ghar", e.g. jail officials should be well trained and competent so that they are able to help the prisoners in rehabilitation, basic needs of the prisoners like cleanliness, clean drinking water, toilets, proper food and clothing etc should be fulfilled, proper medical help to inmates should be available round the clock, counseling should be available to the prisoners to bring positive changes etc. The jail building should have proper ventilation and the environment should be such which can improve not only the mental and physical state of the inmates but also create a sense social relationship among them. Environment plays an important role in achieving the aim of reformation.

But in the survey conducted, it was found that nearly 2,500 inmates were lodged in the Patiala Central Jail against the sanctioned strength of 1,200 as on 2013, resulting into over-crowding in the Jail in the year 2014. Only 171 jail personnel consisting 13 Superintendents/Deputy Superintendents/ Assistant Superintendents, 9 Medical Staff and 149 Warders were posted in the jail to control and reform such a staggering number of prison inmates. Hence, ratio between jail officials and prisoners comes out to be nearly 1:15. In this scenario, it becomes utmost difficult to control as well as reform the prisoners. The overcrowded cells create a lot of problems like lack of hygiene and mismanagement for the inmates as well.

Latrines and bathrooms in the jail were in bad shape. 55.73% inmates told that they were not being allowed proper clothing in the jail. 57.31% prisoners complained that they were not getting proper food in the jail. Over 70% inmates were unhappy regarding availability of library in the jail. It was surprising that 73.13% inmates were unaware about the facility of further studies available in the jail. It was good to note that majority of prisoners expressed satisfaction regarding availability of clean drinking water in the jail. R.O.s were also installed to provide sufficient clean drinking water to them by the Jail authorities. However, the toilets were inadequate for such a large number of prisoners and they were dirty also.

There were only 09 medical officials to take care of health of more than 2,500 prisoners. Out of above mentioned 09 medical officials, only 04 were doctors and surprisingly, out of them, only one doctor was on regular basis, rest being the guest/visiting doctors. It was shocking to find out that in such a huge, overcrowded jail, only 01 old ambulance was available in the jail, which could carry only one or two sick prisoners to hospitals/dispensaries out of jail in the event of major ailment. 56.92% inmates felt that the doctors posted in the jail were careless.

From the jail officials' point of view, budget allocation to the jail was very low to carry out the works of the Sudhar Ghar. 75% jail officials told that they were facing problem of inadequacy of staff/funding, political interference and overcrowding of inmates. They also felt deprived from proper rest and sufficient modern techniques. In addition to it, the jail officials also revealed that there was no program for rehabilitation of prisoners after completion of their punishment.

So far as training of the officials is concerned, though the jail department takes due care of it and 75% jail officials were satisfied with their training, yet if we talk about the modern challenges being faced by the jail officials like use of mobile phones by inmates, gang-wars within jail, supply of drugs from outside and new methods of fleeing from jail, the jail official did not seem to be trained enough to handle these things well. 87.50% jail officials told that they were vigilant about the human rights of the prisoners while dealing with them. Shockingly, a majority of the jail officials did not know anything about Draft Prison Bill, 2010, which is being designed to improve the overall condition of Jails. The administration of the Central Jail, Patiala like other jails of India, barring Tihar Jail, Delhi and Central Jail, Bangalore, has not woken up to the value of training of personnel in modern techniques of prison management.

From humanistic angle, the prisoners appreciate sympathy and prison personnel must be capable of understanding the psychology of the prisoners. Over-worked and stressed officials cannot be expected to live up to this challenge though all the jail officials in the selected sample said that they listened to the complaints of inmates daily. 62.50% jail officials told that they had information available regarding physical and mental problems of the prisoners. Visits of Psychiatrists/ counselors from the office of Civil Surgeon, Patiala were being arranged sometimes for psychological counseling of the inmates to improve their behavior. On the other hand, 57.31% prisoners revealed that treatment of Jail authorities towards them was so-so; it is sometimes good and sometimes bad. The researcher observed that the prisoners were feeling restrained while answering this question about their treatment by the Jail authorities. It says volumes about the treatment of the prisoners by the jail authorities.

            For prisoners, although vocation training for rehabilitation like printing, chair-making and welding etc was being imparted in jail factory yet there was no program by which any employment was being provided to the prisoners after their release from the jail. 51.38% prisoners told that they were not getting work and wages for the same in the jail.

            It was good to note that employment training programs were being carried out in jail in collaboration with I.T.I, Patiala. ‘The Punjab Prisons Department has now hired prestigious Indian Institute of Management (IIM)-Ahmedabad to prepare a blue print for modernizing prisons. A MoU in this regard has already been signed between Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Rajpal Meena and Professor IIM-Ahmedabad Dheeraj Sharma, who is expert on jail reforms. As per MoU, the focus area of the IIM study includes rehabilitation of inmates with particular focus on skill development. The most important aspect is to take help of the IIM in manufacturing high-quality products in jails and to develop retail, distribution and branding strategy for prison-made products. After this study, the IIM will provide framework for development of accredited and high-quality products and ways to get quality accreditation from certifying agencies.’[x] 

            It was disturbing to note that 42.69% prisoners perceived that there was no activity in the jail which brought positive change in their behavior. It was alarming to find out that a majority of inmates feel that life/experience in the jail has made them more criminal minded/hard hearted. Therefore, it shows that Patiala Central Jail is ill-equipped to a large extent to function as a "Sudhar Ghar.”

SUGGESTIONS:

There is an urgent need to make comprehensive jail reforms. Following are some suggestions to make jail administration reformation oriented:-

1.      The jail administration in the Central Jail, Patiala like all other jails in India works as per archaic 1894 Prison Act which must be replaced by a new Prison Act and the NHRC should prepare a draft Bill. Prison Manuals also require amendments with a human rights perspective.[xi] The Draft of Punjab Prison and Correctional Services Act, 2015 is quite good and it must be made an act as soon as possible in order to drastically change the prison administration in tune with the modern needs of a Sudhar Ghar.

2.      Government should increase budget of Central Jail, Patiala sufficiently. The Union Home Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh recently said that the Centre would make all efforts to provide funds for modernization of jails. From the next financial year, the Centre would focus on the second phase of their modernization. For the first phase, the Centre had provided Rs. 1,800 crore to States and Union Territories. The second phase of the programme starts in 2015-16.[xii]  It must be implemented in the right spirit.

3.       Quality of food in the jails is poor and buildings of kitchen are old and badly designed. Kitchen buildings in jails should be designed to accommodate modern cooking equipments, it will ensure saving crucial manpower, cleanliness in cooking and organized distribution of cooked food. Environment-friendly devices like solar energy, biogas, water harvesting should be set-up to reduced burden on the resource in jails.

4.      Multispecialty hospitals exclusively for prisoners should be established district wise within the jails. Tele-medicine system should be introduced to address shortage of doctors.  Since no female jail official or permanent lady doctor was working there in Central Jail, Patiala during the period of present research, a special recruitment of female jail officials and doctors should be carried out keeping in view the female inmates.

5.      According to a report,[xiii] ‘Punjab jails are literally bursting at the seams. Its 26 jails have 44 per cent more inmates than their capacity…In contrast, the jail department faces a severe shortage of about 2000 personnel at different ranks.’ To overcome the acute problem of over-crowded prisons, the Punjab government is constructing two more central jails in Bathinda and Amritsar[xiv]. In CJ Patiala, hectic renovation of barracks is on to increase their capacity which is a must.

Summing up, the good work must be continued in the Patiala Sudhar Ghar and efforts must be made to improve the functioning of the Central Jail Patiala to make it fully a Sudhar Ghar. More involvement of the community, NGOs, social workers etc. in the process of reformation should be encouraged. Education, vocational training, skill development, computer training, productive use of time and energies of prisoners, proper system of allotment of prison labour, uniform wages system in all the prisons all over India, regular counseling, awareness programmes about welfare schemes of govt., adequate training in management of the modern prisons and sensitization of the prison officials, giving human rights to the prisoners are important steps towards reformation of a prisoner. Meditation, yoga, prayers, and religious feelings should be encouraged. A holistic approach covering the physical, mental and spiritual heath and general well-being of prisoners is required to make them become more responsible, creative and potential good citizens.

To conclude, it can be said that a comprehensive rehabilitative programme for prisoners after reformation can ensure their successful integration into the mainstream of the society. One of the very important reasons for the poor performance of the correctional outcome is largely due to its callous unconcern for the fate of its ex-clients. Well-designed after-care programmes are imperative to re-integrate the offender into community life again by preventing the possibility of relapse into a life of crime again.[xv] Only then, the task of Sudhar Ghar will be actually complete.

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[i]           Shipra Chauhan & Swati Upadhay, Prison Management Recent Trends, The Indian Police Journal, July-September 2012, Vol. LIX, No. 3, p. 4.

[ii]           B.V. Trivedi,  Prison Administration in India, Uppal Publishing House, New Delhi, 1987, p. 3.

[iii]          Kiran Bedi, It's Always Possible - Transforming One of the Largest Prisons in the World, Sterling Publishers Private Limited, New Delhi, 1998.

[iv]          http://www.hrdc.net accessed in January, 2011.

[v]           Ibid.

[vi]      R. K. Goyal, Reforms in Jail administration: Perspectives and Prospects, New India Publishers, Chandigarh, 1992, p. 50.

^[vii]         Neetu, Prison Reforms in Punjab with special reference to Open Prisons, Master of Law, Unpublished thesis, Department of Law, Punjabi University, Patiala, 2005-06, p. 13.

[viii]        Model Prison Manual, prepared by Bureau of Police Research and Development, Govt. of India.

[ix]          Punjab Kesari, 10 July, 2013.

[x]           Hindustan Times, 19^th August, 2015.

[xi]         Report of Proceedings of National Seminar on Prison Reforms, November, 2014 available at www.nhrc.nic.in accessed on 27-07-2015.

[xii]        Don’t prisoners have rights? Available at http://www.thehindu.com/sunday-anchor/dont-prisoners-have-rights/article7019102.ece, retrieved on 22^nd March, 2015.

[xiii]       The Tribune, 14^th September, 2015.

[xiv]       Hindustan Times, 8^th August, 2014.

[xv] Mridul Srivastava, After-Care and Follow-up Services for the Released Offenders in Correctional Settings, The Indian Police Journal, Vol. LX, No. 2, April-June, 2013.