Shillong, July 6 : The Meghalaya jail department has transferred at least 85 jail officials to different parts of the state to improve administration after the recent jailbreak in Shillong.
More than 35 officers were transferred from Shillong jail alone.
“We have transferred the officials a few days ago, according to the rule that no official can be posted in one jail for more than three years,” a senior jail department official said today.
The official said the department records revealed that many officials had not been transferred for more than 32 years.
“This goes against the rules and has resulted in the total collapse of jail administration,” he said.
The official added that on some occasions, even after the transfers, the officials did not move out from the place of posting and were even supported by the higher-ups to stay put in Shillong.
According to the official, many jail staff did not want to go to Garo Hills and wanted to continue in Shillong, violating the rules of the jail manual.
After the recent Shillong jailbreak, in which seven undertrial prisoners escaped, it was found that the main reason for the lapse was the collusion of some jail staff with the prisoners.
The leader of the gang, Full Moon Dhar, was killed and the six others recaptured.
The nexus between some of the jail staff and prisoners was proved after magisterial and departmental inquiries into the episode.
After these inquiries, more than 10 jail staff were either suspended or arrested for their involvement in the conspiracy.
Superintendent of Shillong jail Paize Warjri and jailer Denis Warkhyllew were suspended for negligence of duty during the jailbreak.
Six jail employees, Edward Wahlang, Raju Sunar, Sajan Kumar Rai, Tobias Dkhar, Bharat Singh and W. Myrboh were suspended while the services of a cook were terminated.
Home (jail) minister Paul Lyngdoh recently said the seven undertrial prisoners could walk out of the jail because they had the support of the jail staff.
“Some jail staff who were not transferred for long had developed friendship with the prisoners and this has resulted in the escape of the prisoners with ease,” he added.
With frequent jailbreaks in the state, the government is also contemplating the initiation of a slew of measures, including the strengthening of the security system and reshuffling the staff.
The measures include introduction of uniforms for the prisoners and jail warders, installation of CCTV, electronic sliding gates and separate cells for hardcore criminals.