Prisoners at Tihar Jail may soon be able to meet their relatives, friends and advocates through video conferencing. However, to prevent misuse of the system, the jail authorities will record their conversation and analyse them if they feel it is necessary.
Tihar’s technical team is currently working on the system that should be up and working within a year, said sources inside Tihar.
This facility is especially expected to benefit relatives of prisoners who live far away and find it difficult to make it to Delhi often. The relatives will be able to book the video conferencing facility online.
“We will then study the backgrounds of the prisoner and the person wishing to meet him/her virtually. Approval will solely be at the discretion of the jail authorities as the facility can be misused,” the source told The Hindu .
Once approved, the person will be provided a one-time password (OTP) to log on. The session would be recorded and stored for a certain period.
The initiative will come into effect as soon as the existing e-prison software is upgraded to the National Prisons Information Portal (NPIP), in which certain access will be provided to the general public.
The NPIP will also provide for tracking Tihar inmates based on certain parameters. This will allow people to know whether their missing relatives have been sent to jail by any chance.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, an ‘e-visitor software’ is all set to replace the current alphabet-based system.
As of now, in the two day a week system, a prisoner is allowed to meet his relatives on the basis of the alphabet his/her name begins with.
For example, in jail number two, which houses all male criminals sentenced for life, a prisoner with his name beginning with ‘T’ is allowed to meet his relatives on Mondays and Wednesdays.
Similarly, a prisoner with his name starting with ‘L’ is allowed meetings on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
This was inconvenient for relatives who came from far off places but wanted to meet their wards on the two allotted days a week.
“They would have to stay in Delhi for a minimum of three days and longer in cases of some other jails,” explained a senior jail official.
But now, visitors can book any day from Monday to Friday to meet their wards inside jail.
Since meetings on consecutive days too would be permitted, it will offer relief to visitors.
However, there will be a cap on the number of visitors allowed for each jail on a particular day.
“The cap has been put to ensure there is no increased burden on jail staff if an unusually large number of visitors turn up on any day,” said the official.


Visitors will be provided an OTP to log on. The entire video session would be recorded and stored for a certain period