Editorial: Indian prisons, a picture of gloom and doom

The crisis at Indian jails goes deeper than just space -- it is a human rights emergency where the cramped conditions militate against prisoners’ right to good health and dignity

Overcrowding, understaffing and underfunding have been some of the major problems plaguing prisons in India. An excruciatingly slow judicial system, especially the lower courts where hundreds of thousands of cases continue to languish, and the constraints of State governments which control prisons, further add to the woes. The cramped conditions in jails militate against prisoners’ right to good health and dignity. The latest India Justice Report (IJR) 2025 presents a gloomy picture of the state of prison management in the country. As of 2022, there are over 5.73 lakh inmates in jails built to accommodate 4 lakh people. By 2030, the prison population could reach 6.8 lakh — far beyond the projected capacity of 5.15 lakh. The crisis goes deeper than just space. It is a human rights emergency. The plight of the undertrials — people who are not yet convicted — is all the more pitiable. Several of them suffer from mental illnesses due to an inordinately long wait for justice. Marginalised communities are overrepresented behind bars. This reflects deep-rooted inequities in the justice system. Fast-track courts and alternative dispute resolution can reduce undertrial numbers. Infrastructure investment must match rising inmate numbers. There is an urgent need to recruit more doctors, psychologists and staff, and the poor inmates must have access to legal aid. With three out of four prisoners being undertrials, the problem of overcrowding of prisons essentially boils down to how the undertrials are treated. Unfortunately, most of the undertrials, languishing in jails for years, are so poor that they cannot afford to seek bail. The sub-human conditions in several prisons across the country often drive many undertrials to commit suicide.

The IJR, a joint endeavour by six prominent non-governmental organisations and think tanks, ranks States based on their capacity to deliver justice. It assesses the capacity of four core pillars of the justice system: police, prisons, judiciary and the State human rights commissions. As is evident from the report, the justice delivery system continues to falter under the weight of systemic gaps, alarming shortfalls of people and deep-rooted inequalities; a police force that remains critically understaffed, a judiciary struggling to reflect the diversity it serves and a prison system buckling under the pressure of overcrowding and neglect. With 23% vacancies in police ranks and a 50% shortfall in forensic staff, it would be unreasonable to expect police to function effectively and uphold the rule of law. Despite a 2009 directive to ensure 33% reservation for women in police forces, not a single State or Union Territory has been able to meet the criteria. The harsh reality is that women comprise just 8% of senior officers in the force. The judge-to-population ratio remains stagnant at 15 judges per 10 lakh people, far from the Law Commission’s recommendation of 50. Prison staff vacancies have soared to 30%, while overcrowding stands at 131% of the original capacity.

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