* Prisoners lodged in various prisons
across Vidarbha and Marathwada regions are affecting positively the
lives of fellow prisoners by writing essays on novel topic
By Kartik Lokhande
Prison
liberates. Sounds strange? But, if positive thinking is instilled among
the prison inmates, and that percolates among other prisoners, the idea
of prison as a place that liberates could become a reality. In fact, it
may result in positive changes in the lives of prisoners after their
release. And, this is exactly what is taking place silently in the
prisons across Vidarbha and Marathwada regions, thanks to the initiative
of a man.
Shriniwas Sunchuwar, President of Shri Laxmi Nrusinh
Nagari Sahakari Pat Sanstha Maryadit, Ballarpur, is the man who came up
with the idea of motivating prisoners to lead a good life after their
release from prisons. The story of the birth of the initiative is very
interesting. The co-operative society run by Sunchuwar started an open
library in Chandrapur prison in the year 2004. The library had
newspapers. Sunchuwar and the prison authorities were pleasantly
surprised when they realised that the prisoners had a keen interest in
reading, and some of them even had a flair for writing.
“It
triggered a thought -- could we utilise the writing and reading flair of
prisoners for effecting a change? Could we do something to make the
prisoners lead a good and respectable life after their release? And, in
the year 2007, we came up with the idea of organising essay competitions
in Chandrapur prison,” Sunchuwar told ‘The Hitavada’. He discussed the
idea with his friends Ram Bhakre and Dr Sandhya Pawar, who suggested him
the topic for the essay competition. After further discussion, the
topic for the essay competition was finalised -- What Message Do You
Want to Give to Fellow Prisoners After Your Release?
The response
was fantastic. There were many prisoners who wanted to give vent to
their feelings, but did not know how to do that. There were some
educated persons, who acted on the spur of the moment and committed a
crime for which they were serving their prison term. There were others,
who developed negative thoughts about life. “We realised it within a
couple of years that the seemingly simple exercise of writing essay for
the competition was provoking prisoners to think about their past life
and also introspect. They also thought about their life after release
from prisons, and this changed their attitude towards life,” Sunchuwar
recalled.
Buoyed by the response in Chandrapur prison, Sunchuwar and
his team started organising the competition on the same topic in
various prisons across Vidarbha region. Everywhere, it was welcomed by
prison authorities and prisoners both. There were instances when the
essays written by prisoners had such a strong message for fellow
prisoners that it moistened the eyes of readers.
For instance, a
prisoner lodged in Nanded jail wrote, “Life is very beautiful. You
should decide how to live life. To lead a good life, it is essential
that one does not heap injustice upon others when one is happy. Also, it
is important that one does not lose heart when suffering. Every one
suffers but one has to overcome that and scale the heights of success.
Please gain positivity, goodness, wisdom during our stay in prison, and
continue with that after our release.”
“There are several wonderful
pieces of writing that make us feel good. We feel rewarded when a
prisoner released after serving his term calls up and recounts how the
essay competition changed his thinking and helped him lead a better
life,” Sunchuwar said. Shri Laxmi Nrusinh Nagari Sahakari Pat Sanstha
Maryadit, in collaboration with Vijay Prakashan, has brought out a book
‘Karagruha -- Ek Vegle Vishwa’ in Marathi, which is a compilation of
award-winning essays penned by prisoners during various competitions.
The results of the essay competition and transformation in prisoners’ lives, leaves one admire say -- What an Idea Sirji...!!!
(06-12-14)
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