VELLORE: Minister for Water Resources Duraimurugan inaugurated a special literacy programme for prison inmates at Vellore Central Prison on Sunday. The programme is organised by the Directorate of Non-formal and Adult Education and the prison department to enhance basic literacy and numeracy skills in inmates of eight central prisons — Vellore, Trichy, Tiruvallur, Madurai, Salem, Tirunelveli, Cuddalore and Coimbatore — and district prisons in Pudukkottai.
Literacy centres were set up in the respective prison premises and volunteers for the programme were identified with the help of the prison administration. They will be provided with a stipend of `635.
After this six-month programme (from September 2023 to February 2024), a basic literacy exam will be conducted in March and certificates will be awarded to those who complete it. Educational materials such as textbooks, notebooks, and writing tools will be provided to aid the learning process.
School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh, during the event, said, "This initiative will impact around 1,249 inmates across the prisons in Tamil Nadu, providing them with an opportunity to acquire basic literacy and enabling them to reintegrate into society. As many as 1,844 prisoners of Puzhal jail have already been awarded with the certificates."