Noida: For years, the world for these women was reduced to high walls, iron gates and a daily fight to stay hopeful.Now, they are piecing life back together — using vocational skills learnt in Dasna and Luksar jails to earn, raise children and reclaim dignity after release.Reena (name changed on request) knows that journey intimately. Arrested in 2022 after being accused of her husband’s murder, she entered Dasna jail at 22 with a criminal case hanging over her and a five-year-old daughter waiting outside. Last year, she secured bail and returned to Noida, determined to stand on her own feet.Today, she earns a modest income as a freelance beautician in her neighbourhood — work she learnt inside prison. “Before jail, I was a homemaker. My husband abused me regularly and I had no financial independence. In jail, I enrolled in a beautician course. I decided that when I stepped out, I would earn on my own and not depend on anyone for household expenses,” she said.On Saturday, Reena joined other former inmates from the two jails at Delhi’s Lodhi Garden for a Women’s Day gathering organised by India Vision Foundation, a non-profit organisation founded by former IPS officer Kiran Bedi that works with women rebuilding their lives after prison. For several of them, it was their first public event since release. “Many didn’t even know such a day existed until we told them,” a coordinator said.Inside Dasna and Luksar, prison barracks often double as classrooms. Inmates spend hours each week learning trades such as beauty services, tailoring and sewing, crochet work, basic computer skills, and adult literacy for those who never had the chance to attend school. For many, it is the first time they acquire a professional skill that can translate into income outside.“Many women come to jail with almost no financial independence or work experience. When they start learning these skills, it gives them confidence and the possibility of earning a livelihood once they are released,” said Hussain Zaidi, who runs the foundation’s rehabilitation programme in the two jails.One former inmate from Luksar jail, arrested with her husband in a drugs case, spent nearly five years in custody before a court acquitted her. While in jail, she completed a basic computer course under the programme. After release, the certificate helped her get a data entry job at a private company in Sector 4 of Noida. Her salary now pays for household needs and her son’s schooling.
