Author: Explains

Context

• The recent happenings at the CBI are unprecedented. Never has the premier investigating agency of the country been in similar crisis. These events will have ramifications on the dignity, discipline and image of CBI.
• The question that should be troubling us is how are things so opaque within our investigative agency?
• With serious charges and counter-charges flying thick and fast, the ordinary citizen may be left wondering as to what really goes on behind closed doors at the CBI.

INTRODUCTION

• Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is India’s premier investigating agency that handles all high-profile cases. Its job is to ensure a fair and an impartial probe.
• But, recently in October 2018, two of the top officials of the agency have been reported to be involved in a major feud. This has led the Government of India to intervene in order to restore the institutional integrity and credibility of CBI.

About CBI

• Origins of CBI can be traced back to the Special Police Establishment (SPE) set up in 1941 in order to cases of bribery and corruption in War & Supply Department of India during World War II.
• The need of a Central Government agency to investigate cases of bribery and corruption was felt even after the end of World War II. So, DSPE (Delhi Special Police Establishment) Act, 1946 was brought that gave legal power of investigating cases to CBI.
• CBI is not a statutory body as it is not established by an Act of the Parliament.
• CBI investigates cases related to economic crimes, special crimes, cases of corruption and other high-profile cases.
• CBI comes under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Various organizations under this Ministry are Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), Staff Selection Commission (SSC), Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), CBI, Central Information Commission (CIC), etc.
• CBI is exempted from Right to Information (RTI) Act similar to National Investigating Agency (NIA), National Intelligence Grid (Natgrid), etc.
• CBI is headed by a Director, an IPS (Indian Police Service) officer of the rank of Director General of Police. The director is selected based on CVC Act, 2003 for two years-term. Several other ranks in CBI are filled through recruitment by SSC or deputation from Police, Income Tax Department and Customs Department.
• The appointment procedure of CBI Director has undergone several changes over time.

The CBI is subject to three ministries of the Government of India and Two Constitutional bodies

• Ministry of Home Affairs: Cadre Clearance
• DoPT: Administration, Budget and Induction of non IPS officers
• Union Public Service Commission: Officers of and above the rank of Deputy Secretary.
• Law and Justice Ministry: Public prosecutors
• Central Vigilance Commission: Anti-corruption cases.

Present Issue went to SC: Supreme court orders CVC To Enquire Against Alok Verma

• The Supreme Court ordered Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) to complete its ongoing inquiry against exiled CBI Director AlokVerma in two weeks.
• The CVC inquiry will be conducted under the supervision of Former Apex Court judge, Justice A.K.Patnaik.
• Mr.Nageswara Rao will take care of only routine tasks to keep the CBI functioning. He is barred from taking any major or policy decisions.
• All the decisions taken by Mr. Rao (as a Director of CBI) “from October 23 up to this hour” have come under scanner of the Supreme Court.
• The Court asked the list of all decisions taken by Mr. Rao to be placed before the Bench on November 12 in a sealed cover.

The Crisis Is Not About CBI, It’s About the Rule of Law:

• It is perhaps futile to lament that the politicisation of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has been a work in progress for years and that the midnight coup was only its latest manifestation
• But this is not about two IPS officers; it is not even about the CBI or its presumed image or its subverted autonomy, It is about the future of the rule of law.
• It played a pivotal role in criminal justice delivery as highlighted in tough cases like Satyam scam investigation, Bhanvari Devi Murder etc.
• However myriad of responsibilities over categories like Corruption & fraud, economic crimes, special crimes including terrorist attacks has overburdened it and reduced its efficiency.

Problems associated with CBI:

• The agency is dependent on the home ministry for staffing, since many of its investigators come from the Indian Police Service.
• The agency depends on the law ministry for lawyers and also lacks functional autonomy to some extent.
• The CBI, run by IPS officers on deputation, is also susceptible to the government’s ability to manipulate the senior officers, because they are dependent on the Central government for future postings.
• Another great constraint on the CBI is its dependence on State governments for invoking its authority to investigate cases in a State, even when such investigation targets a Central government employee.
• Since police is a State subject under the Constitution, and the CBI acts as per the procedure prescribed by the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), which makes it a police agency, the CBI needs the consent of the State government in question before it can make its presence in that State. This is a cumbersome procedure and has led to some ridiculous situations.

 Criticism and inaction

• The CBI has been criticised from time to time. Justice J.S. Verma in an article published in 2009 stated that “it is sad that even now the CBI continues to disappoint the people whenever it deals with cases against the powerful”.
• The Supreme Court [in 2013] called it a “caged parrot”.
• The criticism is valid, but can we hold the CBI responsible for that? Successive committees at different periods of time suggested changes in the composition and structure of the CBI.
• As far back as 1978, the L.P. Singh Committee recommended the “enactment of a comprehensive central legislation to remove the deficiency of not having a central investigative agency with a self-sufficient statutory charter of duties and functions”.
• The 19th report of the parliamentary standing committee (2007) recommended that a separate Act should be promulgated for the CBI “in tune with the requirements of the time to ensure credibility and impartiality”.
• The 24th report of the parliamentary standing committee (2008) was of the unanimous opinion that “the need of the hour is to strengthen the CBI in terms of legal mandate, infrastructure and resources”. It is unfortunate that none of these recommendations were acted upon.

Who is to blame then?

• The government or the CBI? It is unfair to blame the organisation when it is not given the required legal mandate, when it is not provided with the requisite manpower and financial resources.
• It is true that some of the recent Directors of the CBI brought a bad name to the organisation, but the truth of the matter is that in their cases the selection process was subverted or tweaked and protégés of influential politicians posted.
• The fault is not so much of the organisation as of the people who shape its structure and define its powers.
• It is a matter of common experience that every time there is a sensational case, the popular demand is for a CBI investigation.
• The CBI is a first-class investigating agency as long as the government does not interfere with or influence its functioning.

What will be the Way Forward?

Rule of law is much more than a set of interlocking procedures and principles; it is a sense of shared confidence among citizens and other constitutional stakeholders that values of justness and fairness are not subject to the whims and fancies of the rulers of the day.

• The first reform is to ensure that CBI operates under a formal, modern legal framework that has been written for a contemporary investigative agency.
• A new CBI Act should be promulgated that ensures the autonomy of CBI while at the same time improving the quality of supervision.
• The Lokpal Act already calls for a three-member committee made up of the prime minister, the leader of the opposition and the chief justice of the Supreme Court to select the director. However, not enough has been done to administratively protect CBI from political interference. For this to happen, the new Act must specify criminal culpability for government interference.
• One of the demands that has been before Supreme Court, and in line with international best practices, is for the CBI to develop its own dedicated cadre of officers who are not bothered about deputation and abrupt transfers.
• The CBI did recruit some officers in the past to its cadre, but that effort has gone nowhere, and all senior posts in the CBI are now held by Indian Police Service (IPS) officers.
• It is also possible to consider granting the CBI and other federal investigation agencies the kind of autonomy that the Comptroller and Auditor General enjoys as he is only accountable to Parliament.
• A more efficient parliamentary oversight over the federal criminal and intelligence agencies could be a way forward to ensure better accountability, despite concerns regarding political misuse of the oversight.

Conclusion

• To ensure that the CBI is a robust, independent and credible investigation agency, there is an urgent need to work out a much more transparent mechanism for selection of the Director and induction of officers on deputation.
• The tenure of the Director needs to be enhanced, terms of officers made sacrosanct and the CBI given reasonable financial and administrative autonomy if it has to live up to its motto of ‘Industry, Impartiality and Integrity’.

Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in India

Context

• The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, launched a historic support and outreach programme for the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector. As part of this programme, the Prime Minister unveiled12 key initiatives which will help the growth, expansion and facilitation of MSMEs across the country.
• The Prime Minister said that the 12 decisions that he is announcing, will mark a new chapter for the MSME sector. Noting that MSMEs are one of the principal employment generators in India, the Prime Minister recalled the glorious Indian traditions of small-scale industry, including Ludhiana’s hosiery, and Varanasi’s sarees.

 Introduction

Amid a major decline in credit growth in the economy this year, micro, small and medium sector players are among the worst hit as banks continue to practice caution in lending to the industrial sector. But, for India to pursue high growth path, the MSME sector assumes a pivotal role in driving the growth engine

MSME in India

The MSME sector in India continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience in the face of trialling global and domestic economic circumstances.

• The sector has sustained an annual growth rate of over 10% for the past few years.
• With its agility and dynamism, the sector has shown admirable innovativeness and adaptability to survive economic shocks, even of the gravest nature.

The guidelines with regard to investment in plant and machinery or equipment as defined in the MSMED Act, 2006 are:

The significance of MSME:

The significance of MSMEs is attributable to their calibre for employment generation, low capital and technology requirement.

• They are also important for the promotion of industrial development in rural areas, use of traditional or inherited skill, use of local resources, mobilization of resources and exportability of products.
• According to the estimates of the Ministry of MSME, Government of India, the sector generates around 100 million jobs through over 46 million units situated throughout the geographical expanse of the country.
• With 38% contribution to the nation’s GDP and 40% and 45% share of the overall exports and manufacturing output, respectively, it is easy to comprehend the salience of the role they play in social and economic restructuring of India.
• Besides the wide range of services provided by the sector, the sector is engaged in the manufacturing of over 6,000 products ranging from traditional to hi-tech items.

Why the MSME sector is important for India?

The Indian MSME sector provides maximum opportunities for both self-employment and wage-employment outside the agricultural sector and contributes in building an inclusive and sustainable society in innumerable ways through creation of non-farm livelihood at low cost, balanced regional development, gender and social balance, environmentally sustainable development, etc.

The Diversity of the Indian MSME Sector:

The MSME sector in India boasts of diversity in terms of its size, level of technology employed, range of products and services provided and target markets.

• MSME Tool Rooms have been credited to provide at least ten components that were used in India’s Mangalyaan (Mars Orbiter Mission probe), the Indian Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) most ambitious mission till date, which is the country’s first inter-planetary space mission.
• The sector has also contributed vital inputs for other space satellites such as the Chandrayan. India seeks to launch other ambitious projects like a global sea traffic monitoring system and an earth observation satellite, in cooperation with the EU. The projects envision significant contributions and convergence opportunities from the Indian MSME sector.
• Many global companies are increasingly looking to Indian MSMEs for strategic partnerships of mutual benefit due to the innovative capabilities in niche manufacturing, comparative advantages of advanced engineering, low-cost manufacturing and overheads, ability to speedily absorb new technologies and local skills and capabilities that set these enterprises apart from other national and international players in the sector.
• With its vast resource pool of engineering talent and high skill labour at competitive costs, India has the potential to become a significant player in the global auto industry, especially in engineering and component manufacturing. MSMEs assume a dominant position in the automotive and auto components sector.
• Many more lucrative opportunities can be tapped by Indian MSMEs in the foundry industry, electronics industry, chemicals, leather, textiles, agro and food processing, pharmaceuticals, transport and tourism industries, etc.
• The globalization of businesses has increasingly drawn SMEs into global value chains through different types of cross-border activities. Many entrepreneurs are recognizing the opportunities that this advent ushers and gaining access to global markets has become a strategic instrument for their further development.

Challenges faced by MSME sector:

• The sector is always fund starved. Banks are often unwilling to lend. Besides, whatever bank finance these sector gets, comes at far higher interest costs than what large enterprises can negotiate.
• Long receivables cycles make a mess of working capital management.
• Little access to trained labour, technical progress and management support limit their growth.
• Other common problems faced by small enterprises are related to availability of technology, infrastructure and managerial competence, and limitations posed by labour laws, taxation policy, market uncertainty and imperfect competition.

Government’s support for the sector:

Recognizing the potential of this sector for the nation’s development, the Government of India, through its various agencies, has taken many key steps to strengthen the MSME sector and promote innovation and capacity building in this sector.

• Regular dialogue is facilitated between various stakeholders through the constitution of specific task forces and inter-ministerial committees.
• The Micro and Small Enterprises-Cluster Development Programme is being implemented by the government for the holistic and integrated development of these enterprises in clusters through soft interventions, hard interventions and infrastructure upgradation for enhancing their productivity and competitiveness.
• Provisions are also being made to strengthen the framework of virtual clusters with an aim to assist MSME accessibility of the Ministry from the remote location of their operation.
• The Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme also assists in the technological upgradation on MSMEs.
• The National Manufacturing Competitiveness Programme is another flagship programme of the Ministry of MSME which endeavors to equip these enterprises with technology-based tools in the areas of quality upgradation, productivity, design development, energy efficiency and marketing.
• To ensure better flow of credit to SMEs, the Ministry has introduced a Policy Package for Stepping up Credit to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) under which it operates schemes like the Credit Guarantee Fund Scheme and the Performance and Credit Rating Scheme.
• PM Modi announced 12 measures to boost the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector, including a portal that would enable the units to get a loan in just 59 minutes and interest subvention of 2%.
• Small businesses can use the ‘59-minute’ portal to avail loans of up to Rs 1 crore.
• Small enterprises registered under the goods and services tax will also get a 2 percent tax rebate on incremental loans of up to Rs 1 crore.
• More than 72,000 loans worth over Rs 23,852 crore have been sanctioned.
• The portal is set up by the Small Industries Development Bank of India. MSMEs can register and apply for a loan.

The prime minister unveiled 12 initiatives for MSMEs, which he called “Diwali gifts”. They are:

Access to Credit

• As the first announcement, the Prime Minister announced the launch of the 59 minute loan portal to enable easy access to credit for MSMEs. He said that loans upto Rs. 1 crore can be granted in-principle approval through this portal, in just 59 minutes. He said a link to this portal will be made available through the GST portal. The Prime Minister asserted that in New India, no one should be compelled to visit a bank branch repeatedly.
• The Prime Minister mentioned the second announcement as a 2 percent interest subvention for all GST registered MSMEs, on fresh or incremental loans. For exporters who receive loans in the pre-shipment and post-shipment period, the Prime Minister announced an increase in interest rebate from 3 percent to 5 percent.
• The third announcement made by the Prime Minister was that all companies with a turnover more than Rs. 500 crore, must now compulsorily be brought on the Trade Receivables e-Discounting System (TReDS). He said that joining this portal will enable entrepreneurs to access credit from banks, based ontheir upcoming receivables. This will resolve their problems of cash cycle.

Access to Markets

• The Prime Minister said that on access to markets for entrepreneurs, the Union Government has taken a number of steps already. In this context, he made his fourth announcement, thatpublic sector companies have now been asked to compulsorily procure 25 percent, instead of 20 percent of their total purchases, from MSMEs.
• The Prime Minister said his fifth announcement is related to women entrepreneurs. He said that out of the 25 percent procurement mandated from MSMEs, 3 percent must now be reserved for women entrepreneurs.
• The Prime Minister said that more than 1.5 lakh suppliers have now registered with GeM, out of which 40,000 are MSMEs. He said transactions worth more than Rs. 14,000 crore have been made so far through GeM. He said the sixth announcement is that all public sector undertakings of the Union Government must now compulsorily be a part of GeM. He said they should also get all their vendors registered on GeM.

Technology Upgradation

• Coming to technological upgradation, the Prime Minister said that tool rooms across the country are a vital part of product design. His seventh announcement was that 20 hubs will be formed across the country, and 100 spokes in the form of tool rooms will be established.

Ease of Doing Business

• On Ease of Doing Business, the Prime Minister said his eighth announcement is related to pharma companies. He said clusters will be formed of pharma MSMEs. He said 70 percent cost of establishing these clusters will be borne by the Union Government.
• The Prime Minister said that the ninth announcementis on simplification of government procedures. He said the ninth announcement is that the return under 8 labour laws and 10 Union regulations must now be filed only once a year.
• The Prime Minister said that the tenth announcement is that now the establishments to be visited by an Inspector will be decided through a computerised random allotment.
• The Prime Minister noted that as part of establishing a unit, an entrepreneur needs two clearances namely, environmental clearance and consent to establish. He said that the eleventh announcement is that under air pollution and water pollution laws, now both these have been merged as a single consent. He further said that the return will be accepted through self-certification.
• As the twelfth announcement, the Prime Minister mentioned that an Ordinance has been brought, under which, for minor violations under the Companies Act, the entrepreneur will no longer have to approach the Courts, but can correct them through simple procedures.

Social Security for MSME Sector Employees

• The Prime Minister also spoke of social security for the MSME sector employees. He said that a mission will be launched to ensure that they have Jan Dhan Accounts, provident fund and insurance.
• The Prime Minister said that these decisions would go a long way in strengthening the MSME sector in India. He said the implementation of this outreach programme will be intensively monitored over the next 100 days

Way forward

The challenge now is to create a policy environment that will encourage the growth of more MSME that can hold their own in a competitive market.

• The problems faced by MSMEs need to be considered in a disaggregated manner for successful policy implementation as they produce very diverse products, use different inputs and operate in distinct environments.
• In general, there is need for tax provisions and laws that are not only labour-friendly but also entrepreneur-friendly.
• More importantly, there is need for skill formation and continuous upgrade both for labour and entrepreneurs.
• While the government has to strengthen the existing skilling efforts for labour, there is an urgent need for managerial skill development for entrepreneurs running MSMEs — an area that is considerably neglected.
• Further, the government could consider dedicated television and radio programmes, similar to agriculture, to help educate entrepreneurs running small businesses.

Conclusion

• Issues related to credit, like adequacy, timely availability, cost and mortgages continue to be a concern for MSME. These enterprises are dependent on self-finance. Profit margins are also low.
• The government drive for financial inclusion could benefit such entities. The government could consider dedicating specialised financial schemes for addressing difficulties in assessing and providing credit for small enterprises, as also providing line of credit to firms which are under financial stress.
• However, it remains to be seen whether new institutions such as MUDRA Bank can open the credit markets for small enterprises.

Context

• In an acknowledgement that the more than a century-old system of prisons in India needs repair.
• In this context, the Supreme Court formed a committee on prison reforms.  Headed by former Supreme Court judge, Justice Amitava Roy, it is to look into the entire gamut of reforms to the prison system.
• But this is not the first time that such a body is being set up, examples being the Justice A.N. Mulla committee and the Justice Krishna Iyer committee on women prisoners (both in the 1980s).
• While marginal reforms have taken place, these have not been enough to ensure that prison conditions are in tune with human rights norms.

Reasons for Overcrowding in Jails

• In India, the publication, Prison Statistics India, brought out by the National Crime Records Bureau will provide food for thought for the Justice Roy Committee.
• In 2015, there were nearly 4.2 lakh inmates in 1,401 facilities, with an average occupancy rate of 114% in most.
• About 67% of total inmates were under trials, a commentary on the speed and efficiency of India’s criminal justice system.
• Occupancy by undertrials– 67% of the people in Indian jails are under trials which is extremely high by international standards like it is 11% in UK, 20% in the US and 29% in France. Males at 400,855 make up 95.8% of prisoners while females at 17,681 represent 4.2%.
• Judicial backlogs-Due to 1 crore cases (2016) pending in various courts of the country, jails across the country will remain overcrowded in the absence of any effective systemic intervention.
• Inadequate prison capacity- Most Indian prisons were built in the colonial era, are in constant need of repair and part of them are uninhabitable for long periods.
• Restricted access to legal representatives-Many inmates are unaware of their rights and cannot afford legal aid, limited ability to communicate with lawyers from within the jail premises hampers their ability to defend themselves.
• Problems in acquiring bail – For poor and marginalized it is also difficult to get bail which leaves them no option but to stay in jails and wait for courts final order.
• Unnecessary arrests: Over 60 per cent of arrests were unnecessary and such arrests accounted for 3 per cent of jail expenditure.

Issues with prisons in India

1. Overcrowding: According to Centre’s reply in response to a question in the Lok Sabha in 2017, 149 jails in the country are overcrowded by more than 100% and that 8 are overcrowded by margins of a 500%. Overcrowding takes affects the already constrained prison resources and separation between different classes of prisoners difficult.
2. Under-trials– More than 65% of the prison population in India are under trials. The share of the prison population awaiting trial or sentencing in India is extremely high by international standards; for example, it is 11% in the UK, 20% in the US and 29% in France.
3. Lack of legal aid: Legal aid lawyers are poorly paid, and often over-burdened with cases. Further, there is no monitoring mechanism to evaluate the quality of legal aid representation in most states.
4. Unsatisfactory living conditions: Prison structures in India are in dilapidated condition. Further, lack of space, poor ventilation, poor sanitation and hygiene make living conditions deplorable in Indian prisons.
5. Shortage of staff: The ratio between the prison staff and the prison population is approximately 1:7. In the absence of adequate prison staff, overcrowding of prisons leads to rampant violence and other criminal activities inside the jails.
6. Torture and Sexual abuse: Prisoners are subjected to inhuman psychological and physical torture. Sexual abuse of persons in custody is also part of the broader pattern of torture in custody.  The National Human Rights Commission observes custodial violence as “worst form of excesses by public servants entrusted with the duty of law enforcement.”
7. Custodial deaths: In 2015, a total of 1,584 prisoners died in jails. A large proportion of the deaths in custody were from natural and easily curable causes aggravated by poor prison conditions. Further, there have been allegations of custodial deaths due to torture
8. Underpaid and unpaid labor: Labor is extracted from prisoners without paying proper wages.
9. Discrimination: According to Humans Rights Watch, a “rigid” class system exists in Indian prisons. There is rampant corruption in the prison system and those who can afford to bribe, often enjoy luxuries in prison. On the other hand, socio-economically disadvantaged prisoners are deprived of basic human dignity.
10. Inadequate security measures and management:  Poor security measures and prison management often leads to violence among inmates and resultant injury and in some cases death.
11. Health: In prison the problem of the overcrowding, poor sanitary facilities, lack of physical and mental activities, lack of decent health care, increase the likelihood of health problems. Further, mental health care has negligible focus in Indian prisons.
12. The condition of women prisoners: Women prisoners face a number of challenges including poor nutritional intake, poor health and lack of basic sanitation and hygiene. Further, there are alleged instances of custodial rapes which generally go unreported due to the victims’ shame and fear of retribution.
13. Lack of reformative approach: Absence of reformative approach in the Indian prison system has not only resulted in ineffective integration with society but also has failed to provide productive engagement opportunities for prisoners after their release

SC Judgements

Through a number of judgements {like Maneka Gandhi case (Right to life and personal with dignity), Ramamurthy vs. State of Karnataka (on conditions of prisons) Prem Sankar Shukla vs. Delhi Administration (no handcuffing), Sunil Batra I and II vs. Delhi Admin (rights of prisoners)} on various aspects of condition of prisoners and prison administration, the Supreme has upheld three broad principles regarding imprisonment and custody

1. A person in prison does not become a non-person;
2. A person in prison is entitled to all human rights within the limitations of imprisonment
3. There is no justification for aggravating the suffering already inherent in the process of incarceration.

Legislations

1. The Prisons Act, 1894: It contains various provisions relating to health, employment, duties of jail officers, medical examination of prisoners, prison offences etc.
2. Transfer of Prisoners Act, 1950 – The Act deals with the transfer of a prisoner from state to another state
3. Repatriation of Prisoners Act, 2003: The act enables the transfer of foreign prisoners to the country of their origin to serve the remaining part of their sentence. It also enables the transfer of prisoners of Indian origin convicted by a foreign court to serve their sentence in India
4. Model Prison Manual 2016: It aims at bringing in basic uniformity in laws, rules and regulations governing the administration of prisons and the management of prisoners across all the states and UTs in India
5. Legal service Authority Act, 1987: According to the law, a person in custody is entitled to free legal aid.

Committees and Recommendations

Various Committees and Commissions have been constituted by the State Governments as well as the Government of India to study and make suggestions for improving the prison conditions and administration.

Mulla Committee, 1983

• The major recommendations of the committee included:
• The setting up of a National Prison Commission to oversee the modernization of the prisons in India
• Putting a ban on clubbing together juvenile offenders with the hardened criminals in prison and enacting a comprehensive and protective legislation for the security and protective care of delinquent juveniles
• Segregation of mentally ill prisoners to a mental asylum
• The conditions of prison should be improved by making adequate arrangements for food, clothing, sanitation and ventilation etc.
• Lodging of under trial in jails should be reduced to bare minimum and they should be kept separate from the convicted prisoners

Krishna Iyer Committee, 1987

• The committee mandated to study the condition of women prisoners in the country, recommended induction of more women in the police force in view of their special role in tackling women and child offenders.

In 2005, the Government of India constituted a high powered committee under the chairmanship of Director General, Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D). This committee used the reports of Justice Mulla Committee Report & Justice Krishna Iyer Committee and made several additional and new recommendations. It also drafted a National Policy on Prison Reforms and Correctional Administration, 2007.

Steps taken

1. Modernization of Prisons scheme: The scheme for modernisation of prisons was launched in 2002-03 with the objective of improving the condition of prisons, prisoners and prison personnel. Various components included construction of new jails, repair and renovation of existing jails, improvement in sanitation and water supply etc.
2. E-Prisons Project: It aims to introduce efficiency in prison management through digitization
3. Draft National Policy on Prison Reforms and Correctional Administration:

India’s International Obligations

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR):

It is the core international treaty on the protection of the rights of prisoners. Key features include:

• It imposes a requirement of separation of prisoners in pre-trial detention from those already convicted of crimes.
• It states that there is a requirement that the focus of prisons should be reform and rehabilitation, not punishment
• It bans torture or other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESR):

• It acknowledges that the prisoners have a right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. Further, second-generation economic and social human rights as set down in the ICESR also apply to the prisoners.

United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners or Nelson Mandela Rules:

Fundamental principles on Nelson Mandela Rules are:

• Prisoners must be treated with respect for their human rights and dignity
• No torture or inhumane practice towards prisoners
• Set an objective to prevent recurrence of crime
• Everyone in the prison should be safe at all times
• There should be no discrimination and administrators should take into account needs of individual prisoners especially the vulnerable ones

UN Convention against Torture or Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT): India signed UNCAT in 1997. However, has not yet ratified it.

International Best Practice

Prison System- Norway:

Norway’s incarceration rate is only 75 per 100,000 people. Further, it has one of the lowest recidivism rates in the world at 20%. The criminal justice system in Norway focuses on the principle of restorative justice and rehabilitating prisoners. 30% of prisons in Norway are open and all prisons ensure healthy living conditions, vocational training and recreational facilities.

Prison Reforms are not coming for Implementation:

• The question often asked by governments is, in these days of extreme fiscal stress, why should state resources be diverted to a ‘negative exercise, whose benefits are dubious’?
• There are those who believe that if you keep improving prison conditions, there is likely to be an attendant impact on the incidence of crime.
• This accounts for the reluctance of many criminal justice administrators to employ or enlarge non-prison alternatives such as community service.
• The offshoot of all this is growing numbers of prisoners and the woeful incapacity of governments to build more and larger prisons.
• This is why jail officials are often asked to ‘somehow manage’ with existing modest facilities.

Way Forward

1. There is a dire need to address the issue of overcrowding in Indian jails. Further, sincere efforts should be made to improve living conditions which include better sanitation and hygiene, adequate food and clothing.
2. There should be an urgent focus on addressing health issues and ensuring access to medical care among prisoners. Women’s health needs, covering mental, physical, sexual and reproductive health, require particular attention.
3. Efforts should be made to reform offenders in the social stratification by giving them appropriate correctional treatment. Initiatives should be taken to impart vocational training to prisoners and ensure proper rehabilitation and social inclusion after release
4. The government must take initiative to improve the conditions of under trial prisoners which can be achieved by speeding of the trial procedure, simplification of the bail procedure and providing effective legal aid
5. Issues related to custodial violence and sexual abuse should be dealt with effective monitoring and stringent punishments of those involved in such violence.
6. Open prison as an effective institution for rehabilitation of offenders has been highlighted by Supreme Court as late as 1979 in Dharambeer v State of U.P case. The open prisons should be encouraged as a correctional facility.
7. It is also important to address the issue of inadequate prison management by recruiting more prison staff, imparting proper training and undertaking the modernization of prisons.

Conclusion

• More than a century-old system of prisons in India needs urgent repair.
• Overcrowding, number of undertrials than convicted prisoners, delayed justice, inhumane conditions, brutality and lack of basic human need facilities are some of the major issues in Indian prisons.
• Justice Amitava Roy committee is a ray of hope in the direction of prison reforms, but without political reforms in India’s criminal justice system are impossible