Prison officers complete month-long training on inmate rehabilitation

The one-month Induction Training Programme for newly-recruited staff of De-Addiction Centres in Telangana prisons concluded at the Institute of Correctional Administration (SICA), Hyderabad, on Sunday.

The programme, supported by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment under the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, was designed to prepare selected personnel to handle treatment and rehabilitation of inmates battling substance abuse.

As part of the training, sessions were conducted on the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan and Mission Parivarthana by B. Shailaja, Director, Welfare of Disabled and Senior Citizens. Trainees also undertook field visits to institutions including the Telangana Anti-Narcotics Bureau (EAGLE), the Juvenile Welfare and Correctional Centre at Saidabad, the Probation and Excise Station in Dhoolpet, SLCA-New Hope Organisation, Asha Hospital in Banjara Hills, the Institute of Mental Health in Erragadda, and community-based organisations such as Youngistan NGO. These visits offered first-hand exposure to practical rehabilitation strategies.

Further sessions were conducted by experts such as Mamatha Raghuveer, Director of Tharuni NGO, on substance abuse, while M. Manjula of Swanthana Rehabilitation Centre focused on counselling and relapse prevention. Devika Rani, counsellor with Taruni NGO, also contributed to the training.

At the valedictory session, Soumya Mishra, Director General of Prisons and Correctional Services, Telangana, congratulated participants on completing the programme and emphasised the reformative role of prisons.

The ceremony was attended by senior prison officials including N. Murali Babu, IG Prisons, N. Shiva Kumar Goud, Superintendent of Central Prison, Hyderabad, and S. Srinivas Reddy, Principal of SICA, alongside other officers of the department.