The government has undertaken a project to build a spacious new jail with modern facilities in Narsingdi district for ensuring security of the prisoners and monitoring their movement and activities.

The project will be implemented involving around Tk327 crore. Security Services Division of Home Ministry has taken the initiative.

Directorate of Public Works Department (PWD) under the Ministry of Housing and Public Works and Prisons Directorate will implement the project.

The new jail will have adequate space for the prisoners.  There will also be adequate space for accommodation of officers and staff of the jail.

On September 3 this year, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) approved the ‘Construction of Narsingdi District Jail’ project at a cost of Tk 326.98 crore. The project will end in December 2021.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also directed for establishing virtual court inside all the jails of the country to facilitate judicial proceedings, Planning Minister MA Mannan said referring to the Prime Minister’s directive in this regard.

The system should be introduced in all the prisons to avoid the hassle of taking the accused from jail to court, he said.

Virtual court is a system of producing the prisoners before the court through video conferencing. Here the prisoner remains in jail while the judge in his court. 

The system has already been introduced in Dhaka Central Jail and Kashimpur Jail as part of a pilot project, sources said.

According to the Prisons Directorate and District Prisons, Narsingdi Jail was first opened in 1983 (as sub-divisional jail). It was developed as a District Jail in the 1998. When it was declared as district jail, it could accommodate only 244 inmates. Currently, the jail is housing an average of 800 to 1000 inmates.

In this context, the Prisons Directorate acquired 20 acres of land along the Dhaka-Narsingdi highway at a cost of Tk60.79 crore from the revenue budget.

Under the project, two six-storey buildings will be constructed for male prisoners, one six-storey building for the convicted prisoners, one four-storey building for a 100-bed hospital and one two-storey building for mentally sick prisoners.

On the other hand, a five-storey building will be constructed for female detainees and convicted prisoners, a two-storey building cell for female prisoners, a four-storey building for division entitled female prisoners and juvenile detainees, and a three-storey building for meeting prisoners with relatives.

A three-storey building will also be constructed for doing administrative work of the prison.

Apart from these, a three-storey building for bachelor officers, a five-storey quarter of 1025 square feet, a five-storey quarter of 1000 square feet, a five-storey quarter of 800 square feet and two 10-storey quarter of 650 square feet will be constructed.

Besides, a four-storey building will be built for inmates’ laundry and salon facilities.