JAMMU, November 5: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday directed authorities to conduct surprise inspections of prisons across Jammu and Kashmir and ensure forensic examination of electronic devices seized during security operations to detect possible links with unlawful activities.
Chairing a high-level review meeting of the Prisons Department at Lok Bhavan in Jammu, Sinha called for closer coordination among the Police, Prisons Department and intelligence agencies to counter militancy networks, radicalisation and other security threats.
He directed officials to put in place a unified mechanism for regular intelligence sharing and periodic review meetings among the concerned agencies, stressing that timely exchange of inputs was essential to identify threats and prevent unlawful activities within prison premises.
The Lieutenant Governor also called for surprise inspections of prison facilities and their surrounding areas to ensure compliance with established security protocols.
The meeting reviewed several proposals to strengthen prison security and modernise administration, including the establishment of dedicated Prison Intelligence Units in jails, introduction of biometric identification systems across all prisons and improved surveillance mechanisms.
Sinha also called for expanding telemedicine facilities to ensure better healthcare access for inmates and directed the department to strengthen its human resources for more efficient prison management.
During the review, he assessed the progress of the upcoming High-Security Prison at Mahanpur and instructed officials to expedite the remaining construction and development work to ensure its completion within the stipulated timelines.
The meeting was attended by DGP Nalin Prabhat, DGP Prisons J&K Deepak Kumar, Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, Chandraker Bharti, Special DG Coordination, PHQ, S.J.M. Gillani, ADG CID M.K. Sinha, Principal Secretary to the Lieutenant Governor Govind Jaiswal, Additional Director, IB J&K and Ladakh, Pankaj Kumar Thakur, and other senior officers.
The review focused on strengthening prison security, upgrading technological infrastructure and improving coordination among law enforcement and intelligence agencies across Jammu and Kashmir.
