Jail Authorities Decline AC for Naidu Amid Concerns Over Mosquito Bites
No provision for air conditioners in prisons manual, say officials
KAKINADA: The central jail authorities have expressed their inability to provide an AC facility in the block where former chief minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu is currently on a fortnight-long remand.
There is talk in Telugu Desam circles that Naidu is facing hardships in jail due to mosquito bites. Three days back, former finance minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu told the media after his meeting with Naidu in jail that the party chief was troubled by mosquitoes. He requested the government as well as the central jail authorities to provide AC to Naidu’s cell.
The death of remand prisoner Ganjeti Satyanarayana (19) added to the fears of the TD leaders. Satyanarayana was sent to the central jail in a robbery case on Sept 6. He developed a fever and vomited blood due to dengue infection. Admitted to the Government General Hospital in Kakinada, and he died there on Sept19.
TD general secretary Nara Lokesh expressed concern over the mosquito menace in Naidu’s cell. He tweeted that mosquitoes were biting his father and that the officials did not take care of the TD chief.
Lokesh alleged that Chief Minister Jagan Reddy hatched a conspiracy and booked “illegal” cases to harass his father. He said the CM should take responsibility if anything untoward happened to his father.
Prisons DIG Ravikiran told Deccan Chronicle, “There are 2,064 prisoners in the central jail, as also the gardening and jail personnel. It is our responsibility to take all necessary steps for their safety as per norms.”
He said the district malaria officer visited the central jail and did a study on the mosquito situation there. He found there was no larva and no stagnation of water in the central jail, and that fumigation was being done once every week.
“There is no provision to provide AC to a prisoner, as per the Prison Manual. As far as I know, no jail can provide such a facility.”
“There are six air-cooled jails in New Delhi that functioned as per their atmosphere conditions. However, if courts permit and if we receive instructions from the higher authorities, the central jail authorities can do whatever is possible,” he added.