Yerwada Central Jail is a noted high-security
prison
A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correc ...
in
Yerwada
Yerawada is a neighbourhood of the city of Pune in the state of Maharashtra, India. Before that British Raj Yerawada was known as ''Yeraoda.'' Yerawada is one of the most densely populated areas in Pune. It is located at the beginning of Ahmedn ...
,
Pune
Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...
in
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
. This is the largest prison in the state of Maharashtra, and also one of the largest prisons in
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
, housing over 5,000 prisoners (2017) spread over various barracks and security zones, besides an
open jail
An open prison (open jail) is any jail in which the prisoners are trusted to complete sentences with minimal supervision and perimeter security and are often not locked up in their prison cells. Prisoners may be permitted to take up employment w ...
just outside its premises. Many well known nationalist fighters individuals including
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
and
Jawaharlal Nehru
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat—
*
*
*
* and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...
have been jailed here.
Overview
The jail is spread over 512 acres,
[ holds over 5000 prisoners and is one of the largest prisons in South Asia.][ Within the campus, the main high security jail is protected by four high walls ] and is divided into various security zones and barracks it even has egg-shaped cells meant for high-security prisoners.[ It has been known for overcrowding and poor living conditions after news reports in 2003 lead to Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MHRC) issuing a notice.
]
History
Yerwada Central Jail was built in 1871 by the British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
, when it was outside the city limits of Pune.
Under British rule, the jail housed many Indian nationalist fighters including Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
, Jawaharlal Nehru
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat—
*
*
*
* and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...
, Netaji Subhas Bose
Subhas Chandra Bose ( ; 23 January 1897 – 18 August 1945
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*) was an Indian independence movement, Indian nationalist whose defiance of British raj, British authority in India made him a hero among Indians, but his warti ...
, Joachim Alva
Joachim Ignatius Sebastian Alva or Joachim Piedade Alva (21 January 1907 – 28 June 1979) was an Indian lawyer, journalist and politician from Mangalore. He was a prominent Mangalorean Christian figure involved in the Indian independence movem ...
and Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Bal Gangadhar Tilak (; born Keshav Gangadhar Tilak (pronunciation: eʃəʋ ɡəŋɡaːd̪ʱəɾ ʈiɭək; 23 July 1856 – 1 August 1920), endeared as Lokmanya (IAST: ''Lokmānya''), was an Indian nationalist, teacher, and an independence a ...
and Bhuralal Ranchhoddas Sheth.[ In 1924, ]Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar (), Marathi pronunciation: inaːjək saːʋəɾkəɾ also commonly known as Veer Savarkar (28 May 1883 – 26 February 1966), was an Indian politician, activist, and writer.
Savarkar developed the Hindu nationalis ...
was also kept in the jail. Mahatma Gandhi spent several years in Yerwada Jail during India's freedom struggle, notably in 1932 and later in 1942 during the Quit India movement
The Quit India Movement, also known as the August Kranti Movement, was a movement launched at the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8th August 1942, during World War II, demanding an end to British rule in ...
, along with many other nationalist fighters. During his 1932 imprisonment, which started after his arrest in January 1932, Gandhi went on an indefinite fast to protest against the Communal Award
The Communal Award was created by the British prime minister Ramsay MacDonald on 16 August 1932. Also known as the MacDonald Award, it was announced after the Round Table Conference (1930–32) and extended the separate electorate to depressed Cl ...
for depressed classes on 20 September 1932,. He discontinued his fast after signing an agreement called the Poona Pact
The Poona Pact was an agreement between Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. B. R. Ambedkar on behalf of Dalits, depressed classes, and upper caste Hindu leaders on the reservation of electoral seats for the depressed classes in the legislature of British ...
, with the leader of depressed classes, Dr. Ambedkar in the jail on 24September 1932. Gandhi was released from the jail in May 1933.
During the Emergency era of 1975–77, many political opponents of Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (; Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and a central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was elected as third prime minister of India in 1966 ...
were detained in this jail. Among those detained here were RSS chief Balasaheb Deoras Balasaheb may refer to:
* Balasaheb Deoras, also known as Madhukar Dattatraya Deoras (died 1996), third Sarsanghchalak of RSS
*Balasaheb Thackeray, also known as Bal Keshav Thackeray, founder and leader of Shivsena
* Balasaheb Vikhe Patil (1932–2 ...
, Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Atal Bihari Vajpayee (; 25 December 1924 – 16 August 2018) was an Indian politician who served three terms as the 10th prime minister of India, first for a term of 13 days in 1996, then for a period of 13 months fr ...
, Pramila Dandavate
Pramila Dandavate (Devanagari: ) (1928–2001) was a political activist from Mumbai, associated with the Praja Socialist Party and later with the Janata Party.
Early life and background
Pramila Dandavate was born on 27 August 1928 born to Janard ...
, and Vasant Nargolkar.
In 1998, noted social worker Anna Hazare
Kisan Baburao "Anna" Hazare (; born 15 June 1937) is an Indian social activist who led movements to promote rural development, increase government transparency, and investigate and punish corruption in public life. In addition to organising an ...
was briefly imprisoned here after he lost a defamation suit, and Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
film actor Sanjay Dutt
Sanjay Balraj Dutt (born 29 July 1959) is an Indian actor who primarily works in Hindi cinema. In a career spanning over four decades, Dutt has won several accolades and acted in over 100 films, ranging from romance to comedy genres, though u ...
in 2007 [news.outlookindia.com | Sanjay Dutt prisoner no C-15170 in Yerawada Jail]
Outlook, 3 August 2007. and among other noted criminals, scamster Telgi
Abdul Karim Telgi (1961-2017) was a convicted Indian counterfeiter. He earned money by printing counterfeit stamp paper in India.
Early life
Telgi's mother was Shariefabee Ladsaab Telgi, and his father was an employee of Indian Railways. His ...
and former underworld don Arun Gawli
Arun Gulab Gawli (born 17 July 1955) also known as Arun Gulab Ahir, is an Indian politician, underworld don and retired gangster. Gawli and his brother Kishor (Pappa) entered the Mumbai underworld in the 1970s, when they joined the "Byculla Co ...
started his political career while being lodged in this jail, and is currently serving a life sentence here, in a murder case. The 26/11 Mumbai terror attacker, Ajmal Kasab
Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab (13 July 1987 – 21 November 2012) was a Pakistani terrorist and a member of the Lashkar-e-Taiba Islamism, Islamist Islamic terrorism, fighter organization, through which he took part in the 2008 Mumbai atta ...
who was jailed in 2008, was hanged and buried here on 21 November 2012.
From 2002 to 2008, a noted smuggler from Singapore, Major Paul, was transferred here from Kolhapur Jail. He went on to study law in prison and became a noted prison activist. His petitions to the Bombay High Court resulted in the release of scores of prisoners wrongly imprisoned there. After his release, he continued his prison social works from Pune. Amongst his noted achievements were the changes made to the Prison Furlough rules via his own Furlough Application to the Bombay High Court. His life story was made into a TV serial episode shown on Sony TV under the "Prayaschit" series. He is currently an Ordained Pastor of the Protestant Church.
Yerwada Open Jail
Yerwada Open Jail (YOJ) is situated just outside the Yerwada Central jail within the campus and houses life sentence prisoners, who have amicably completed five years in the central jail. Here they live under basic security, and are not put in prison cells. Over 150 inmates of the open jail grow organic vegetables, over five guntha of land, which are sent to the Yerwada Central Prison and the women's prison. Besides this, the cow shed has 30 cows, through which manure is collected and used in farming activities.
Programs
A program designed to spread Gandhian The followers of Mahatma Gandhi, the greatest figure of the Indian independence movement, are called Gandhians.
Gandhi's legacy includes a wide range of ideas ranging from his dream of ideal India (or ''Rama Rajya)'', economics, environmentalism, ...
principles in Yerwada prison was introduced in Yerwada prison in 2002 by Asim Sarode, founder o
Sahyog Trust.
As part of the programme, the prison inmates are taught Gandhian principles for one year, at the end of the year, they have to appear for an examination. Admission to the course is optional. Inmates of the jail produce nearly 5,000 clothes daily, supplied to jails across the state, it has its own textile mill and later around 150 inmates, including women, are involved in stitching these clothes. Some of these costumes, like uniforms of superintendents, prisoners, wardens, and guards, were made for Madhur Bhandarkar’s 2009 film ''Jail
A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correc ...
''.
In 2007, in an effort to promote Indian medicinal plants, 8,500 saplings of sandalwood
Sandalwood is a class of woods from trees in the genus ''Santalum''. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and, unlike many other aromatic woods, they retain their fragrance for decades. Sandalwood oil is extracted from the woods for us ...
were planted within the central jail premises, while 9,000 saplings of Ashoka
Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, ...
(''Saraca indica
''Saraca indica'', commonly known as the asoka tree, ashok or simply asoca, is a plant belonging to the subfamily Detarioideae of the family Fabaceae. The original plant specimen from which Carl Linnaeus described the species came from Java, but ...
'') in its open jail. An Integrated Counselling and Testing Centre (ICTC) related facility was started at the jail on 2 October 2008, by the Maharashtra State AIDS Control Society (MSACS), and within the following year 55 inmates including six women tested HIV positive.
See also
* Harsul Central Jail
* Arthur Road Jail
The Mumbai Central Prison, also referred to as Arthur Road Jail, was built in 1926, and is Mumbai's largest and oldest prison. It houses most of the city's prisoners. It was declared a Central Jail in 1972. Although its name was changed to Mumba ...
References
External links
*{{commons category-inline
Prisons in Maharashtra
Buildings and structures in Pune
1871 establishments in British India