For the 10 prisoners who began tilling a piece of land on the premises of Coimbatore Central Prison on Wednesday, it was a positive step forward in their life. Thanks to the joint efforts of the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), the State Agricultural and Prison Departments and the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, these prisoners will learn the nuances of farming. The BARC has come forward to provide the seeds of high-yielding drought-resistant groundnut variety it had developed, free of cost. And the Agriculture Department and TNAU will help the prison inmates prepare the seeds for sowing and conduct soil-testing.

K. Anandan, Superintendent of Coimbatore Central Prison, says the plan was to initially take up cultivation in five acres in the prison followed by another ten acres in the open air jail at Singanallur here. Besides generating revenue, the groundnut sales would also benefit the public as the rates would be much lower than the market price. The prisoners would be paid Rs. 100 per day.

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