For the first time ever, authorities at Chittagong Central Jail have introduced digital financial service ‘Nagad’ for the inmates.
The service was introduced on Thursday.
The move came after relatives of prisoners were unable to deposit money them following the coronavirus pandemic across the country.
As per the jail code, the inmates cannot keep with cash with them. They can only spend money kept in their Personal Cash (PC) account, which receives deposits from their relatives.
According to the prison sources, the relatives can send Tk 1,000 to an inmate’s PC account at a time and a maximum of Tk2,000 a month.
The money received through ‘Nagad’ will be deposited to the PC of the inmates.
The inmates can purchase foods and other essential items from the jail canteen using the money deposited in their PC.
Speaking to the Dhaka Tribune, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Prisons (Chittagong Division) AKM Fazlul Huq said relatives of the inmates are not being able to come from distant places to deposit money in their respective PC.
“The introduction of the mobile banking has reduced the hassle of the relatives of the prisoners to a great extent. Similarly, the inmates can buy their essential items from the canteen of the prisons,” said the DIG.
Previously, Chittagong Central Jail authorities introduced phone call service so that the inmates could communicate with their family members once a week.
Currently, Chittagong Central Jail houses around 7,000 inmates, including convicts and prisoners facing trial, against its capacity of 1,853.
On March 26 last year, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated Bangladesh Post Office's digital financial service, 'Nagad', to meet the growing demand of mobile banking among people.
The 'Nagad' service is the new version of the previously introduced 'Postal Cash Card' and 'Electronic Money Transfer System (EMTS) of Bangladesh Post Office.
