Tamil Nadu at forefront in nation reforming, rehabilitating inmates, says Minister S Regupathy
State prison dept has the country’s only society to extend aid to discharged prisoners and executes a unique PATTAM initiative to reduce the number of repeat offenders, points out Regupathy;
State law minister S Regupathy
CHENNAI: Minister for Law and Prisons S Regupathy on Friday stated in the House that the State is leading the country in modernising prison administration, with a strong focus on reforming and rehabilitating inmates and their social integration.
The minister emphasised that the government is placing importance on the efficient management of prisons and correctional services, while also working towards reducing habitual relapse into crime among first-time offenders through programmes such as PATTAM.
The minister said that except for Tamil Nadu, no other State in the country has the Discharged Prisoners' Aid Society (DPAS), which extends financial aid to released prisoners to help them rebuild their lives. The government, through the society, has disbursed Rs 7.05 crore to 1,410 released prisoners over the past two years.
The minister stated while replying to the debate on demands for grants for the department that the department has established libraries at a cost of little over Rs 2 crore in 2023-2024 to foster reading habits among inmates as part of the reformation programme.
The minister told the House that Chief Minister M K Stalin supported this initiative by donating 1,500 books to the libraries and providing a platform at book fairs. This has encouraged the public to donate books for the prison libraries, leading to the creation of book banks with over a lakh of books for the prison libraries.
The department's efforts through programmes such as personality and attitude transformation through Personality and Attitude Transformation by Therapeutic Management (PATTAM), which focuses on first-time offenders, have significantly reduced recidivism. The minister noted that only 144 out of the 17,707 inmates who participated in the programme have been re-arrested.
The minister announced Rs 20 crore for renovating old central prisons and building additional accommodation in district jails in Dharmapuri, Namakkal, and Salem districts.