Assam Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Pijush Hazarika have directed the owners of private rehabilitation centres in Assam to ensure basic facilities like healthy living conditions and regular medical check-up every three months for inmates. He also proposed skill training of reformed inmates from such centres at government expense.
This comes after Hazarika visited a private rehabilitation centre in Guwahati last week where he was dismayed by the conditions he witnessed.
He held a meeting with the owners of the city centres and related authorities on Saturday regarding the problems plaguing these places.
The minister gave strict instructions to ensure minimum facilities for the prisoners.
Hazarika said, “I understand that facilities cannot be provided overnight. So, we are giving them three months. If they fail to ensure these facilities by the end of the deadline, those centres will have to be closed.”