Koraput: Jeypore Special Jail is grappling with severe space constraints and acute shortage of staff, posing major challenges to prison administration and inmate rehabilitation. Jail authorities have urged the district administration to expedite allotment of land for construction of a new jail complex to meet growing requirements.Established as a sub-jail in 1950, the facility was upgraded to a district jail in 2023 and later designated as a special jail. Despite the upgrade, it continues to function from its old premises spread over just 1.7 acres in the heart of Jeypore town.The jail has an authorised capacity of 382 inmates, but officials said its occupancy remains above 350 for most of the year, resulting in severe congestion and limiting the scope for expansion of infrastructure and rehabilitation programmes.According to jail officials, the lack of adequate space has affected several activities that are expected to be carried out in a district-level prison, including skill development, vocational training, agricultural activities and other inmate welfare and rehabilitation initiatives.To overcome the problem, the jail administration has sought allotment of around 15 to 20 acres of land for construction of a modern jail complex along with residential quarters for staff. However, the proposal is yet to be finalised.Jail superintendent Santosh Patnaik said the existing infrastructure is no longer sufficient to meet the requirements of a special jail.“The existing jail is facing a serious space crunch. The revenue department has identified a few patches of land within a radius of about 4 km from Jeypore town, but no site has been finalised so far. Once land is allotted, it will pave the way for construction of a modern jail with adequate facilities,” Patnaik said.Responding to the issue, Jeypore sub-collector Jadumani Nayak said the process of identifying suitable land has already begun following the proposal submitted by the jail authorities.“Based on the request received from the jail authorities for construction of a new jail, the process of identifying suitable land has been initiated. We hope that the matter gets finalised soon,” Nayak said.Apart from infrastructure constraints, the prison is also facing a serious manpower crisis. Officials said the post of jailor has remained vacant, while two posts of sub-assistant jailor and five posts of warder are also vacant. The jail also does not have a medical officer, with healthcare services currently being managed by a pharmacist engaged on a daily-wage basis.Officials said the shortage of personnel has increased the workload on the existing staff and affected the day-to-day functioning of the prison.
