Mandoli jail inmates get Yoga classes to help lessen their distress
A yoga programme has been started in Central Jail number 15 of Mandoli with the help of “Art of Living”, an NGO that has been a long-lasting partner of Delhi Prisons since 1999, providing spiritual preaching and yoga sessions to inmates in various prisons of Delhi to help the inmates decrease their psychological distress and improve their behaviour during their incarceration period and turn themselves into a better person.
Prison Department, Delhi has introduced various new programmes for reforms under supervision of Director General (DG) Delhi Prisons Sanjay Baniwal. Reforms not only focuses on stress management while in jail but also livelihood skills that include various programmes such as skill development programme in jail number 4 with the help of the government and NGO (M/s Primero Skills) and another skill development programme in jail number 5 with the help of an NGO, Jan Shikshan Sansthan. Various initiatives were also taken in the field of education with the help of NIOS and IGNOU, in-house training in the field of plumbing, electrician, food making (within langar), administration, medical helper, horticulture etc. Now, the yoga programme with the help of Art of Living has been initiated in all 16 jails of Delhi Prisons with the directions of DG prisons Sanjay Baniwal.
The Art of Living programme in the prison department in Delhi has been effective with prisoners who are high-security risk terrorists, dreaded criminals, dacoits, and murderers. “The programme has had a positive impact on the mentally imbalanced and highly aggressive. The programme has boosted the efforts to reform people who have deviated from crime and inspired them to become useful citizens of society. A testimony to this is that in jails number 4 and 5, separate wards have been designated as the Art of Living wards, so that the inmates can do ‘Sudarshan Kriya’ without any disturbance”, Baniwal said.
Delhi Prisons is working towards the reduction of the recidivism rate, control of the incidents of violence in jails, more participation towards positive constructive programmes like skill development, education, better health outcomes, good sleep, de-addiction, less stress, better social skills etc.
