The sufferings of inmates crammed in the Dhaka Central Jail are likely to continue as the authorities have re-fixed another deadline for opening the under-construction new central jail in Keraniganj.
As per the latest schedule, the Keraniganj Central Jail will be opened in April next.
Earlier, the modern jail was supposed to be inaugurated in October last but it was not done because of delayed construction of the multi-storied prison cells having capacity of 8,200 inmates.
Talking about the issue, a senior official of the project said they have deferred the inauguration deadline of the jail project for six more months to finish the first phase of the project.
"About 50 per cent of infrastructural works has so far been completed. Construction works of the project have been delayed because of bureaucratic tangles. This has slowed down the financial flow for the project," he said.
The Keraniganj Central Jail will be the country's largest prison with a 50-bed full-fledged hospital once it is completed, the project official said.
Asked about finishing the task within the second deadline, he said it will require the ongoing calendar year to fully complete the first phase of the project.
"But, we're hopeful of taking the project to a level for accommodating the inmates within the deadline if we get required funds in time," he added.
As per the project, there will be two units in the same compound of the Keraniganj jail each having the capacity of 4,000 male inmates. There will also be a smaller unit accommodating 200 female prisoners.
According to the plan, the project involving Tk 6.32 billion will be implemented in two phases. Nearly 80 buildings will be constructed in the project site, which will have separate cells for under-trial, convicted, adolescent and dangerous prisoners.
Under the first phase, one jail, each for male and female inmates, and approach roads are being constructed. In the second phase, a hospital with state-of-the-art facility and other infrastructure facilities are to be installed.
When contacted, A.K.M Zahir Uddin Babar, assistant inspector general of prisons, said prisoners from the Dhaka Central Jail will be shifted to Keraniganj, leaving behind the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum and the Four National Leaders Memorial Museum inside.
Expressing his disappointment over the slow pace of construction works, he said the project is very important for the Department of Prisons to lessen the mounting pressure to accommodate huge number of prisoners in a limited space.
"Around 68,000 prisoners are now being housed in the country's 67 jails against the capacity of 33,834," he added.
Built on 36 acres of land, the central jail at Nazimuddin Road in downtown Dhaka also witnessed many historical episodes. The facility housed many important political prisoners, especially during the Language Movement of 1952, the Six-Point Movement and the Liberation War of 1971.
Talking to the FE, jailer of the Dhaka Central Jail Mahabubul Islam said nearly 8,000 prison inmates, including women, crammed in the central jail against the capacity of 2,700, have put extra pressure on the prison officials to handle those.
He said the process of shifting the Dhaka Central Jail has been going on in phases since 2003. A portion of the jail was shifted to Gazipur after the establishment of four separate jails in Kashimpur.
The project for constructing jails in Keraniganj on 194 acres of land was approved in the 2005-06 fiscal. The construction work began in September 2007 when the estimated cost was at around Tk 3.50 billion.
Then, the project evaluation committee revised the expenditure for constructing the country's largest jail project to Tk 6.32 billion in 2010.
Keraniganj central jail to be opened in April, finally
Jubair Hasan | Published: January 18, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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