Life At A Corrective Centre

A visit to a prison a few months ago is indeed an eye opener for me on many things about life. First and foremost, it made me feel very lucky to be a free person. Although life behind the bars at the corrective centre is not as bad as what some people have told me before, it is still a place that I would never happily accept as “home”. The tight rules and regulations, lack of complete privacy (including when one needs to answer the call of nature), the monotonous daily routine and the “stressful atmosphere” at the centre would definitely turn me into a moron. 

But, that is the price a person has to pay for flouting the law, committing a crime or causing hardship to others. Definitely, rapists, snatch thieves, child molesters or wife beaters should be treated as who they are and not pampered with luxurious treatment in a prison. Providing a VIP treatment to a convicted criminal would defeat the real purpose of the setting up of a prison.

It is difficult to illustrate the real situation, anguish or stark reality that surrounds the life of an inmate while serving his or her sentence. One has to undergo it or at least visit the place to feel and understand the situation. But, after seeing things at close range and talking to several inmates, my advice is “don’t ever dream of being a resident of a prison, as the agony is very real.”

I suggest that schools, youth associations or non governmental organizations should make arrangements with the relevant authorities to organize visits to prisons or dadah rehabilitation centres to let their members see for themselves the situation at the corrective centres. Perhaps, the visit would deter them from getting involved in criminal activities and help them realize the importance of being law-abiding human beings.