New phone call restrictions in Kerala prisons; calls can be made only to...

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: From March 1, prisoners in the state will be able to call only numbers having a BSNL connection from jail. The directive in this regard was issued by Jail Superintendent Balram Kumar Upadhyay. If prisoners want to contact relatives, friends, and lawyers, they must have a BSNL connection.

It was found that some prisoners coordinate crimes through conference calls after calling the numbers they provided to the jail. This new decision is to prevent this. Prisoners can contact other people indirectly through making conference calls. Though this is also possible in BSNL, the prison authorities have reached an agreement with the company to cut this system. A company called 'Allen Group' handles the telephone services of the prison department.

Conversations are recorded

Conversations on phones that prisoners can officially call out to are being recorded in all three central jails in the state. But there is no system for this in other places. That is why this system is being introduced in all the prisons. In 2021, the Excise Enforcement Squad found that a hashish oil smuggler was coordinating drug trafficking using an official phone from the Thiruvananthapuram Central Jail, and the accused was arrested.

Prisoners can call only three people, which include their closest relatives or friends. For this, smart cards with these numbers added are given to the prisoners. These numbers are checked and registered by the prison authorities. The prisoners are allowed to call up to Rs. 450 per month through the smart card.