Chief secretary of the state Durga Shanker Mishra issued instructions to the UP State Legal Services Authority and related officers to provide a list of such prisoners in all jails in the state within a month.
Prisoners over the age of 70 or suffering from serious diseases should be prioritised and action taken to ensure their release within two months, said a government spokesperson. However, the government has advised caution in this regard and directed that the UP Prisoner Probation Rules and jail manual be followed for the release.
There are about 120,000 inmates lodged in 74 overcrowded prisons across the state.
The state has also been making efforts to decongest its jails. Last year it did away with the clause that to avail premature release a convict needs to be at least 60 years of age, removing the age bar.
Under the fresh set of instructions, the factors to be kept in mind for considering releasing the prisoners include whether the crime committed was confined to the individual without affecting the society at large, apprehension and probability of the prisoner committing an offence in the future, whether there is a meaningful purpose in further detaining the prisoner in jail and whether the socio-economic condition of the prisoner’s family is suitable for premature release of the prisoner.
