Maharashtra prison dept renews MoU with open varsity for courses for inmates

The Maharashtra prison department has renewed its memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Yashwantrao Chavan Open University to impart education to inmates as part of reform measures, an official said on Thursday.

The official said that the MoU was first signed in 2017, and 2,199 male and 207 female inmates have so far obtained degrees awarded by the open university.

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"Since the MOU period got over, it was renewed on the occasion of Teachers Day. The aim is to help inmates complete their education and dissuade them from returning to criminal activities after release. There is a provision to offer remission of 90 days to convicts who complete their degree courses successfully," a statement from the prison department informed.

"So far, 214 convicts benefitted from the provision for completing their degree and 16 got another 90-day remission for completing post graduate degree. Courses offered include BA, B.Com, MA, and M.Com as well as certificate courses in subjects like Human Rights, Health Friend, Yoga Teacher, and Gandhi Thoughts. There are vocational ones such as beauty parlour courses, water management, digital photography and video production," it said.

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