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| III. ACTIVITIES IN FEMALE SECTION |
| 1. Training Center for the
women prisoners |
The Women's Barrack in the Amravati Central
Prison is overcrowded, housing more than 70 prisoners and often
crossing the mark of hundred prisoners at a time. The official capacity
of the Barrack is only 34 women prisoners. A long-term social work
intervention could reduce this overcrowding in the prison. There
are under trial and convict women prisoners in the barrack. The
convict prisoners are more than half of the population. Majority
of these convicted women prisoners are serving sentence for murder
of their family members. There are under-trial women prisoners in
the Barrack and they also remain in prisons for months and years
due to their cases pending for trial. They do not have any activity
whereby they can engage themselves physically and mentally unlike
their male counterparts in the prison. |
We had started a Training Center for the women
prisoners in the barrack in year 2003. The center provides long-term
training of tailoring and simultaneously provides short-term training
courses in ceramic painting, candle making, embroidery, mehandi
etc. This training is aimed at keeping them engaged while they are
in prison and to help as a source of livelihood in some way on their
release from the prison. |
| In the coming future, we plan to further conduct
training programmes in the Women's Section for teaching Sankar Bharati
rangoli, galeecha work, ari-work, zardozi, ,making of decorative
hair-clips. And keep a follow-up with the released under-trials
who have undergone training while in prison, and assist them in
further developing their skills outside, if interested. We also
plan to organize sale of the products made by these women in the
prison as well as help in promoting the products made by the released
women. |
| Number of women who have undergone training
at the center |
| Activity |
2003-04 |
2004-05 |
Total |
| Long-term training |
17 |
24 |
41 |
| Short - term Training |
32 |
40 |
72 |
| No. of Training Workshops |
03 |
05 |
08 |
| 2. Adult Literacy
Class |
In the Women's Section of the prison,
all the convicts and undertrial prisoners are housed together due
to their small number as compared to the male convict population
of the prison. Our female workers visiting this Section are social
workers who take up cases of the women. The Balwadi teacher, besides
managing the balwadi also conducts adult literacy classes for the
women prisoners. For the adult literacy classes, provision of slates,
pencils, books, etc. has been provided by the organization inside
the prison. Two totally illiterate women aged about 60-65 years
have got well trained and have become capable of appearing for the
4th standard examination. Forms for the same have been filled up
with a local school and we had submitted a letter from the Prison
Superintendent along with a letter from the women's respective village
Gram Panchayat. These women are preparing to appear for their exam
in April' 2006. |
| Number of women who attended the
adult literacy class |
| Year |
2003-04 |
2004-05 |
Total |
| Women attended literacy class |
14 |
16 |
30 |
| CASES |
1) Neeta, aged 45 years is
a convicted prisoner undergoing a life sentence for a murder
case of some neighbors. She was quite active in politics in
her village during which this incident occurred and she was
arrested. She was totally illiterate. In regard to convicts,
their family members or relatives either do not come to meet
for a long time or there is no contact even through letters.
So the women prisoners either request the other literate prisoners
to write out a letter for them or they would request our Balwadi
teacher. But this lady had never come forward with this need. |
Once she approached the Balwadi
teacher requesting her to teach her to read and write. So
she was given the necessary slate and pencil and would attend
the class regularly conducted by our teacher. It has been
three years since she has begun her literacy class and this
year the for m has been filled up of Neeta so as to appear
for the 4th standard examination to be conducted in April'
06. |
For submission of the examination
form, our workers had to gather the required documents such
as letters from the respective village Sarpanch in regard
to her residence proof. The final efforts of all this is the
happiness and pride on the face of Neeta in her struggle to
become literate and further appear for the examination. This
would prove as a motivation to the other prisoners aspiring
for the same. |
| 3. Balwadi
for children of prisoners inside the prison |
| Work initially commenced
with the beginning of the Balwadi in the Women's Section of
the Amravati Central Prison. The Balwadi is equipped with
innovative, modern toys, games to help the children in developing
their physical as well as mental faculties. To create an academic
atmosphere different from the routine prison environment,
children attending the Balwadi have been provided with uniforms.
Biscuits and fruits are given to the children by the organization.
Besides this, the children are provided milk as part of their
diet by the prison administration. There are at a time 10-15
children, age group ranging between 1- 5 years. Thus, the
teacher is able to give lot of individual attention to each
child whereby there is good progress in the child's development
by the time the child has to leave prison to either go back
to the family or some institution/school. They become quite
capable of being admitted into good educational institutions
outside, as per a few cases handled by us. The Balwadi acts
as a good foundation in developing the child's personality. |
| Number of children who attended the
Balwadi |
| Year |
Girls |
Boys |
Total |
| 2003-04 |
21 |
16 |
37 |
| 2004-05 |
18 |
21 |
39 |
| |
39 |
37 |
76 |
|
|
Activity |
2003-04 |
2004-05 |
Total |
| Long-term training |
17 |
24 |
41 |
| Short - term Training |
32 |
40 |
72 |
| No. of Training Workshops |
03 |
05 |
08 |
| 2. Adult Literacy Class |
In the Women's Section of the prison,
all the convicts and undertrial prisoners are housed together due
to their small number as compared to the male convict population
of the prison. Our female workers visiting this Section are social
workers who take up cases of the women. The Balwadi teacher, besides
managing the balwadi also conducts adult literacy classes for the
women prisoners. For the adult literacy classes, provision of slates,
pencils, books, etc. has been provided by the organization inside
the prison. Two totally illiterate women aged about 60-65 years
have got well trained and have become capable of appearing for the
4th standard examination. Forms for the same have been filled up
with a local school and we had submitted a letter from the Prison
Superintendent along with a letter from the women's respective village
Gram Panchayat. These women are preparing to appear for their exam
in April' 2006. |
| Number of women who attended the
adult literacy class |
| Year |
2003-04 |
2004-05 |
Total |
| Women attended literacy class |
14 |
16 |
30 |
| CASES |
1) Neeta, aged 45 years is a convicted
prisoner undergoing a life sentence for a murder case of some neighbors.
She was quite active in politics in her village during which this
incident occurred and she was arrested. She was totally illiterate.
In regard to convicts, their family members or relatives either
do not come to meet for a long time or there is no contact even
through letters. So the women prisoners either request the other
literate prisoners to write out a letter for them or they would
request our Balwadi teacher. But this lady had never come forward
with this need. |
Once she approached the Balwadi
teacher requesting her to teach her to read and write. So she was
given the necessary slate and pencil and would attend the class
regularly conducted by our teacher. It has been three years since
she has begun her literacy class and this year the for m has been
filled up of Neeta so as to appear for the 4th standard examination
to be conducted in April' 06. |
For submission of the examination
form, our workers had to gather the required documents such as letters
from the respective village Sarpanch in regard to her residence
proof. The final efforts of all this is the happiness and pride
on the face of Neeta in her struggle to become literate and further
appear for the examination. This would prove as a motivation to
the other prisoners aspiring for the same. |
| 3. Balwadi for children of prisoners
inside the prison |
| Work initially commenced with
the beginning of the Balwadi in the Women's Section of the Amravati
Central Prison. The Balwadi is equipped with innovative, modern
toys, games to help the children in developing their physical as
well as mental faculties. To create an academic atmosphere different
from the routine prison environment, children attending the Balwadi
have been provided with uniforms. Biscuits and fruits are given
to the children by the organization. Besides this, the children
are provided milk as part of their diet by the prison administration.
There are at a time 10-15 children, age group ranging between 1-
5 years. Thus, the teacher is able to give lot of individual attention
to each child whereby there is good progress in the child's development
by the time the child has to leave prison to either go back to the
family or some institution/school. They become quite capable of
being admitted into good educational institutions outside, as per
a few cases handled by us. The Balwadi acts as a good foundation
in developing the child's personality. |
| Number of children who attended
the Balwadi |
| Year |
Girls |
Boys |
Total |
| 2003-04 |
21 |
16 |
37 |
| 2004-05 |
18 |
21 |
39 |
| |
39 |
37 |
76 |
|
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