Government Of Assam Home & Political Assam Prison Headquarters

There are various rehabilitation programmes available for prisoners lodged in prisons such as Vocational Training, Agriculture & Horticulture activities, Educational Programmes, Yoga, Computer literacy etc.

• Functional literacy of Elementary Education is provided to illiterate inmates by the Jail Teacher. Higher Education Programmes imparted to the inmates with the help of Indira Gandhi National Open University and Krishna Kanta Handique State Open University in the Jails of Assam.
• Vocational training programmes enhance employability potential of the prisoners after their release and help in their rehabilitation. 
• University of Science &Technology (USTM), Meghalaya has already started a training programme on development of Computer Skills and Tailoring. They have provided 5(five) nos of computers and 2(two) nos of sewing machines free of cost for this purpose.
• The inmates in the jails are learning new type of skills and ability in trades like agricultural and horticultural farming.

Rehabilitation Programmes have shown favourable outcomes. These kind of programmes provide opportunities for the prison inmates to engage themselves in fruitful pursuits during the term of their sentence in prisons.

The training of prison inmates in vocational trade has led to the production of articles which have good market value, resulting in gainful productivity of the prison inmates. The Programmes have led to inmates earning sufficient wages during their term in the prison.

The prisoners have been paid equitable wages for the works done by them at such rates as follows:
Skilled Male- Rs.75 per day
Unskilled Male- Rs. 55 per day
Skilled female- Rs.100 per day
Unskilled female- Rs.80 per day
(Wages of female inmates have been enhanced by Rs. 25/- as per Hon’ble Finance Minister’s Budget announcement for the year 2016-17)

It is expected that most of the released prisoners have used the skills / knowledge gained from vocational training during their jail term in earning their livelihood.

Guidelines for released convicts to avail the rehabilitation grant:

• The convict should be life convict
• Economically backward belonging to poor family
• Superintendent to recommend suitable cases by filling up Proforma ‘A’ and sending to Inspector General of Prisons
• Inspector General of Prisons submits such list of released prisoners for all jails of Assam, to Home Department for approval. On approval of Government, Rehabilitation Grants of Rs.10,000/- is released to the Released convicts to set up a small business/enterprise and to carry out a trade with the knowledge gained from vocational training in the jail.

Many Jail officials keep in touch with the released prisoners and help them in overcoming the hurdles they face in assimilation in society due to the stigma attached to incarceration.