Almost 25 prisoners test positive for AIDS in KP jails
Almost 25 prisoners have tested positive for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa prisons due to overcrowding of inmates, according to the official documents.
The official document stated that, there were 196 prisoners suffering from infectious diseases in prisons, out of which 138 prisoners were suffering from Hepatitis C, 29 from Hepatitis B, 25 from AIDS and 4 from TB.
The documents obtained from the KP Prisons Department under the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Right to Information Act 2013.
The Peshawar Central Prison has the highest number of infected prisoners with at least 34 of the inmates testing positive for Hepatitis C, seven for Hepatitis B, and six for AIDS.
Bannu Central Jail with nine infected prisoners, Lakki Marwat District Jail with 12, Nowshera sub-jail with eight, Swabi sub-jail 13, Charsadda jail with 12, and Malakand sub-jail with four cases.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s prisons have the capacity of 13,076 prisoners but at the time 14,321 prisoner are taking space in the jail. The documents revealed that only 2,897 have been sentenced by courts while 11,424 under-trial inmates were awaiting court decisions on cases.
Available space for prisoners: 13,076
- Men: 12,621
- Women: 455
- Current number of prisoners: 14,321
- Men: 13,722
- Women: 181
- Children: 364 boys and four girls
Superintendent Peshawar Central Jail Maqsood Khan, while talking to private news channel, said that the hospital prison has a capacity of 124 patients and eight doctors including two female doctors are always available to treat the sick prisoners.
He added that jail also provides medicines and whenever it is required Specialist doctors also come for the check-ups of the prisoners
Maqsood Khan furthered that the central jail also has the services of psychiatrist to treat the mental disorders of the inmates.
What are HIV and AIDS?
HIV is a virus that weakens your immune system. AIDS is a condition that can happen as a result of an HIV infection when your immune system is severely weakened. You can’t get AIDS if you aren’t infected with HIV.
