The States have also been asked to inform the Commission of the time-frame within which mentally ill patients, now lodged in different jails in the States, would be transferred to appropriate mental hospitals. The Chairperson had earlier, on 7 February 2000, written to all Chief Ministers requesting them to take steps to prevent the lodging of mentally ill persons in jails, reiterating the advice of the Commission that the rights of such persons must be safeguarded. Yet earlier, on 11 September 1996, the then Chairperson of the Commission, Justice Ranganath Misra, had written to all Chief Ministers drawing their attention to this issue and advising them that no mentally ill person should be permitted to remain in any jail after 31 October 1996. However, there were 2,79,082 inmates in prisons as of 1 July 2000. Arunachal Pradesh and Lakshadweep reported a nil prison population during this period.
Some States have relatively manageable prison population.
The percentage of female prisoners as against the total prison population of the country is 3.3. The Commission will soon be writing to all States asking them concerning the measures being taken by them to tackle the problem of over-crowding. The Commission will thereafter make comprehensive recommendations in this regard. This was the first of a series of similar exercises that will be held in different locations in various parts of the country. The Commission plans to develop such a structure so that there is a networking of NGOs throughout the country.