Pune's historic Yerawada jail to be opened for general public

Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh announced, on Saturday (January 23), that Pune’s Yerawada Jail will be opened to the general public as part of its new “Jail Tourism” policy.

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“We aim to provide school, college, educational institutions and registered NGOs access to these historical places at extremely nominal rates. This will help them look and feel elements of Indian freedom struggle and other historical events that have taken place at Yerawada jail. So far, jails in Maharashtra have been out of bounds to the general public. It’s pertinent to note that on any given day the number of people visiting Yerawada will not exceed more than 50,” Deshmukh said.

Yerawada jail has historical significance as some of India’s famous freedom fighters were imprisoned there during the British regime, which includes Mahatma Gandhi, Lokmanya Tilak, Motilal Nehru, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabhai Patel, Sarojini Naidu, Subash Chandra Bose.

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The scheme is expected to be launched on January 26 (Republic Day) by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray along with Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. The opening up of Yerawada Jail is the first phase of the policy, and the second one phase is opening up of Nagpur Central Jail. It could extend to other jails in the state.