COIMBATORE: For the first time, the Coimbatore prison department is giving self-employment training to convicts who are reaching the end of their sentence. "In the next six months, 55 inmates, including 20 women inmates, will have served the entirety of their sentences.
The majority of them are in prison for over 10 years. After their release, they need to find work to support themselves as well as their family. Hence, we have started this training, which will make them entrepreneurs," an official from the prison department said.
According to officials, training sessions are arranged in the prison campus under the guidance of Canara Bank, the lead bank of the district through its Rural Self Employment Training Institute at Pudhupudur near Periyanaickenpalayam.
L Eswaramurthy, Director of Canara Bank Rural Self Employment Training Institute (CBRSETI) said, "We have arranged training for repairing electronic gadgets and manufacturing household items including soap and phenyl. The training session for women is scheduled for 10 days and for men it lasts for a month. They will be trained by certified trainers, working in leading private firms."
He said certificates will be provided to them after completion of their training to help them to get bank loans to start their business in the future. "Along with the entrepreneurial training, we conduct self-motivation sessions for their rehabilitation and also the discussions for guiding them towards better business ideas," he added.