3x overcrowded Ctg central jail’s expansion stalled for six years

Infographics: TBS

Chattogram Central Jail is grappling with a severe overcrowding crisis, currently holding nearly three times its official capacity. 

The facility, designed for 2,249 inmates, houses an average of over 6,000 prisoners daily, leading to immense suffering for both inmates and staff due to limited space.

Overcrowding has also heightened security risks. On 6 March 2021, murder accused Forhad Hossain escaped by scaling the prison wall. Investigators later attributed the incident partly to excessive inmate pressure and staff shortages, recommending that city and district inmates be kept separately – a measure yet to be implemented.

Although plans were initiated to construct a new jail, no progress has been made in six years as land acquisition remains stalled. Despite repeated reminders from prison authorities, the project has failed to advance. 

At a meeting on 2 November, the home ministry presented a proposal to establish separate jails for Chattogram North and South districts.

"Chattogram Central Jail is practically standing on a volcano," said DIG of Prisons Md Sagir Mia. "This problem cannot be solved by any single authority. Separate facilities should have been built long ago."

Ataullah Samrat, an official prison inspector, added: "Nowhere else in the world are prison conditions as dilapidated as ours. Two inmates share one mattress, which spreads disease. We've improved water and bedding conditions somewhat, but a new jail is essential if we want to ensure proper health and safety."

Staff shortages

The overcrowding is compounded by a dire staff shortage. The jail currently employs a senior jail superintendent, one jailer, three deputy jailers, 15 chief guards, 30 assistant chief guards, 351 male guards and 11 female guards.

"We are facing an acute manpower shortage," said the senior jail superintendent. "We need three additional deputy jailers and at least 100 more staff members. The number of death-row convicts has also increased – from 50-60 a few years ago to 206 now."

Only two classified inmates are currently housed in the jail: Former Iskcon leader Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, and Yasin Rahman Titu, son of the KDS Group chairman. Both receive separate bedding and dining facilities.

New jail project stalled

An initiative to build a new central jail to ease the pressure has been hampered by a six-year delay in land acquisition.

The authorities selected 75 acres at Jangal Salimpur under Sitakunda upazila for the new jail. However, the land remains occupied, preventing acquisition. Letters requesting the land were issued in 2019, 2020, 2021 and most recently in October 2023. But the matter has remained unsettled.

Authorities report that around 3,50,000 people live illegally on government land at Jangal Salimpur, an area shaped by decades of hill-cutting and informal settlement.

Multiple eviction drives have failed due to organised resistance by influential groups. Officials say this instability has become the major obstacle to acquiring the proposed land for the new jail.

A 2017 High Court ruling, stemming from a petition by the Chattogram Nagar Bostibashi Sangram Parishad, prohibits the eviction of the settlement's residents unless they are rehabilitated elsewhere.

Even if the area is cleared, implementing the project would take eight to ten years due to the presence of dense settlements, widespread illegal structures, environmental clearance requirements and lengthy construction processes. 

Prison officials warn that without an immediate alternative site, the current overcrowding could spiral into a major administrative crisis.

Historical background

Chattogram Central Jail is one of the country's most significant correctional facilities and the second largest in terms of inmate numbers. Established in 1885 during British rule, it was upgraded to a central jail on 16 September 1999.

Notably, revolutionary leader Masterda Surya Sen and his comrade Tarakeshwar Dastidar were executed in this jail in 1934. Their bodies were subsequently cast into the Bay of Bengal by British authorities to prevent public unrest – an episode that remains etched in history.