Lesson for life: Telangana prisoners can study via open schooling

Hyderabad: The Telangana Prisons Department on Saturday, November 7, launched the Open School Programme for inmates. The initiative, taken in collaboration with the Telangana Open School Society (TOSS), will allow inmates to pursue Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and Intermediate courses.

Principal Secretary to the Education Department, Yogita Rana, inaugurated the programme in the presence of DG of Prisons and Correctional Services Soumya Mishra.

The programme will help inmates resume their education through TOSS. They would be provided study materials, academic support and classes on Sundays and second Saturdays.

Prisoners who complete their Intermediate would then be eligible to pursue higher education.

Mishra said that 70 prisoners have expressed interest in enrolling for SSC and another 15 for Intermediate courses.

Rana said prison inmates would receive a Rs 1,250 reduction in course fees. She added that dedicated TOSS centres would operate within prisons to help inmates enrol in the programme and access academic assistance. The department would also support the establishment of prison libraries to foster reading habits and independent learning.

She also said that children of inmates, if facing difficulty in pursuing education, could reach her through the DG of Prisons.

TOSS Director K. Lingaiah assured the Prisons Department that their staff would assist them in conducting classes.

Eighty-five prisoners have expressed interest in pursuing Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and Intermediate courses under a new open schooling programme launched by the Telangana Prisons Department in collaboration with the Telangana Open School Society (TOSS).

Of the 85 inmates, 70 have expressed willingness to enrol for SSC and 15 for Intermediate courses for the current academic year.

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