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New Delhi, March 16 The Supreme Court on Monday said the prisons are overcrowded which strikes against the Centre's advice to maintain "social distancing" and this posed a major risk against the backdrop of outbreak of coronavirus in the country where over 100 people have tested positive for the infection.The Supreme Court has taken suo moto cognisance of overcrowding in prisons across the country."While the Government of India advises that social distancing must be maintained to prevent the spread of Covid-19 virus, the bitter truth is that our prisons are overcrowded, making it difficult for the prisoners to maintain social distancing," said a special bench headed by Chief Justice S.A. Bobde and comprising Justice L Nageswara Rao, which was not part of the roster on Monday but took up the hearing on the matter of "public importance relating to medical assistance to prisoners".The top court observed that there are 1,339 prisons in this country, and approximately 4,66,084 inmates in them. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, the occupancy rate of Indian prisons is at 117.6 per cent, and in states such as Uttar Pradesh and Sikkim, the occupancy rate is as high as 176.5 per cent and 157.3 per cent, respectively."Like most other viral diseases, the susceptibility of Covid-19 is greater in over-crowded places, mass gatherings, etc. Studies indicate that contagious viruses such as Covid-19 virus proliferate in closed spaces such as prisons. Studies also establish that prison inmates are highly prone to contagious viruses," the court observed."The rate of ingress and egress in prisons is very high, especially since persons (accused, convicts, detenues etc.) are brought to the prisons on a daily basis," it added.The top court also noted that several correctional officers and other prison staff enter the prisons regularly, and so do visitors (kith and kin of prisoners) and lawyers. "Therefore, there is a high risk of transmission of Covid-19 virus to the prison inmates. For the reasons mentioned above, our prisons can become fertile breeding grounds for incubation of Covid-19," added the court."If prisoners are tested positive for the Covid-19 virus, immediate measures have to be taken for their quarantining and medical treatment," it stressed.The top court observed the Director General of Prisons, Kerala has set up isolation cells within prisons across Kerala. Those suffering with Covid-19 symptoms such as cold and fever are being moved to these isolation cells. All the new inmates who will be admitted to the prisons in Kerala will be isolated in the isolation cells in the admissions block for six days before permitting their entry into the regular prison cells."Similarly, an isolation ward has been set up in the Tihar Jail, Delhi and all the 17,500 inmates of the said jail were checked for Covid-19, and it was found that none displayed any symptoms relating to Covid-19," said the top court.However, the court said it does not have information about the measures taken by the other state governments in their prisons to prevent the contagion of Covid-19 and appointed senior advocate Dushyant Dave as amicus curiae to assist the court on the matter.The bench issued a notice to the Directors General, Prisons and Chief Secretaries of all states and Union Territories seeking their reply, by March 20, on the measures taken to contain the spread of Covid-19. The court also asked the authorities concerned to depute, by March 23, an officer, who could assist the court on the matter. The matter is scheduled for further hearing on March 23.The Court has sought suggestions from all state governments and Union Territories for measures to contain the possible spread of Covid-19 among prisoners as well as juveniles lodged at remand homes.Attorney General K.K. Venugopal suggested that the court could issue guidelines on the matter. At this, the bench replied it would first like to see suggestions from the state governments, observing though some states have taken concrete steps to contain the spread of the viral infection, some have not done enough.( With inputs from IANS )

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