NHRC takes suo moto cognisance over lack of infrastructure in Kerala jails

New Delhi [India], May 2 (ANI): The National Human Rights (NHRC), India, has taken suo motu cognisance of a media report highlighting the non-availability of infrastructure and manpower to provide for the prisoners to pursue education in the Kerala jails, as per a press release.
Reportedly, the growing number of inmates, including those convicted of grave crimes, are choosing to turn their lives around by enrolling in regular or online educational courses. However, the authorities are struggling to support their efforts.
The Commission has observed that the news report's contents, if true, raise issues of violation of human rights of prisoners who intend to pursue educational programmes/ courses. Therefore, the Commission has issued a notice to the Director General of Prisons, Government of Kerala, calling for a detailed report on the matter within four weeks.
According to the media report, carried on 25th April 2025, the Kerala prison authorities are facing severe staff shortages, a lack of dedicated devices, and a secure internet connection for the inmates willing to study online. Reportedly, there is no monitoring system to ensure that prisoners use the internet only for educational purposes.
Another challenge is that some dangerous criminals are also now trying to apply for the regular course as a devious tactic to get the interim release to facilitate travel outside the prison.
On Thursday, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) took suo motu cognisance of a media report that, even after 18 days, there has been no breakthrough in the case of a six-year-old girl who went missing from an under-bridge in Koh-e-Fiza area in Madhya Pradesh's Bhopal.
According to an official release, the Commission has issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police (DGP) of Madhya Pradesh, seeking a detailed report within two weeks.
Reportedly, the missing child's mother, a homeless woman with eight children, suspects the involvement of one of the relatives in the disappearance of her daughter. But the police is not conducting a fair investigation, and no arrests have been made in the matter to date, the release said. (ANI)