Raj Govt starts ‘Bandi Canteen’, prisoners can now buy goods worth Rs 3500 every month

Jaipur: Rajasthan Government has taken a big step of opening ‘Bandi Canteen’ at all prisons of the State, wherein prisoners can now buy goods worth Rs 3500 per month from the canteen.

Cooperative Minister Udailal Anjana said that since the introduction of the bandi canteen for prisoners by the cooperative and jail administration, there are about 43 to 58 types of food items, confectionery, cosmetics, toiletries, notebooks, pencils and daily use items available for the prisoners.
 
Anjana addressed the virtual opening ceremony of the prison canteens in Sikar, Sriganganagar, Bhilwara, Dholpur, Kota, Chittorgarh, Bharatpur, Dausa and Kotputli along with the inauguration of the prison canteen to be operated by Confed in the Central Jail, Jaipur on Wednesday.

During the ceremony, he stated that the canteens will be reviewed and inspected after 6 months with feedback, so that better facilities can be provided to the prisoners.

On this occasion, the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment Jail, Tika Ram Jully made an announcement to increase the buying limit from Rs 2500 to Rs 3500.
He also interacted with the prisoners and listened to their problems and assured them of speedy solutions.
 
Director General of Police, Bhupendra Kumar Dak said that there are about 23,000 prisoners in 140 jails of the State. During visits to various jails, it came to the fore that a large number of prisoners are not habitual offenders. Continuous efforts are being made to develop the attitude of the prisoners to do good work.
He said that this effort of Confed and jail administration to provide quality material to the prisoners is also good for the health of the prisoners.

Registrar Cooperative Muktanand Agarwal said that quality material is made available at reasonable prices by cooperative consumer stores. With this work, the institution will also be able to do business and the prisoners will also be able to get optimal quality products regularly.
 
Managing Director Confed V.K. Verma said that in the prison canteen, the prisoner will be able to buy goods on the prescribed day through biometric verification.

Cooperative Minister Anjana and Tika Ram Jully, in the presence of Additional Chief Secretary Home Abhay Kumar, Director General Police Jail Bhupendra Kumar Dak, Additional Director General of Police Jail Malini Agrawal, Registrar Cooperative Muktanand Agrawal inaugurated the canteens in 9 districts, virtually.