India, March 14 -- According to the Prison Statistics India Report 2022, there were 5.73 lakh prisoners housed in 1,330 prisons in the country as of December 31, 2022. Around 77% of them were undertrials, and the prison occupancy averaged around 131% - though in hundreds of prisons, the occupancy varies between 150-200%. The India Justice Report 2022 highlights that prison staff vacancies stand at ~30% and medical staff vacancies at ~40%, which has a cascading effect on prison conditions and stress levels experienced by those managing the prisons. Over the years, the courts have been directing the executive to ensure the well-being of prisoners, conduct inspections, and hold prison administrations to account.

In 2015, the Bombay High Cou...