Sisterly love soothes inmates at Chhattisgarh jail

Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, Aug 28 (UNI) For 30-year-old Kamal it was the first Rakhsha Bandhan behind bars and, sitting gloomily in a corner of the Central Jail here, he was wondering whether his wrist would receive a rakhi this year.

In fact he spent several sleepless nights with that apprehension plaguing his mind and today he saw hundreds of sisters lining up outside the prison. Kamal's joy knew no bounds when the sentry called out the names of his younger sister Visharan and himself.

The women and girls had walked miles to the jail and the crowd resembled that at a fair.

''I hope that we are able to tie the next rakhi at home,'' Visharan told UNI.

Kavita from Raipur district's Bhatapara did not even know what crime her brother Parasram is incarcerated for.

In the crowd was aged Jeerabai, from Janjgir district's Ghinwra village, who is conveying a rakhi from her daughter Gajmati to her son Manharan who is serving term for murder.

''The jail administration has ensured that each of the 1,836 inmates receives a rakhi. Brahmakumaris, Lions' Club and Adarsh Samaj Mandal members will tie rakhis to those whose family members could not arrive. Besides Chhattisgarh, we have inmates hailing from Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Maharashtra,'' Prison Superintendent Rajendra Gaekwad told UNI.

The scene is similar at ths state's 27 jails and sub-jails whose capacity is 5,299 but house 10,296 inmates.

UNI