Annual Report 2008-2009 to them under the Legal Aid Scheme. Few of them divulged that these lawyers made all kinds of unlawful demands on them and their family members. Constitution/Meeting of Board of Visitors The Board of Visitors is an important institutional arrangement involving civil society in keeping a watch on the jail administration. It comprises both official and non-official members. Most of the jails visited did not have the Board of Visitors as per the State Jail Manual. In Puzhal Central Prison I, a proposal for the constitution of a Board of Visitors had been submitted but the same was awaiting approval of the State Government. However, in its absence, the District Judge, Collector/District Magistrate, Superintendent of Police and other Officers from the State Human Rights Commission were making regular visits from time to time. In Rongyek Central Prison, though the State Government had constituted a Board of Visitors but it had not met for a very long time. The Board of Visitors in Tejpur Central Jail, Assam was reported to be non-functional. In Bhabanipatna District Jail, the Board of Visitors had been constituted but did not make a single visit to any jail after it was last constituted in the year 2007. Repair and Maintenance of Buildings Most of the jails visited were housed in old dilapidated buildings and thus required frequent repairs for its proper upkeep. In few of the old jail buildings, the drainage system posed to be a perennial problem. Literacy and Vocational Training Programmes In almost all the jails literacy and vocational programmes were being run by the jail staff either independently or with the help of non-governmental organizations. Few of the jails, like the District Jail in Shillong, Aguada Central Jail in Goa, Munger District Jail in Bihar and the Tezpur Central Jail in Assam, need to improve upon their literacy and vocational training programmes. One way of doing this by the jail authorities could be by way of eliciting the support of nongovernmental organizations in running their literacy and vocational training programmes. The District Jail at Shillong in Meghalaya had rudimentary facilities for imparting vocational training to convicts but the same was not carried on in a sustained manner due to space constraint. Training There is an urgent need to train and sensitize all the officials and staff of the jails visited. In fact, training of officials and staff should be an on-going aspect of all the jails in the country. A step in this direction would not only motivate the jail personnel to carry out their role and responsibilities in a conscientious manner but also make them aware about various issues concerning prisoners. Other Issues Two of the inmates lodged in Khunti Sub-Divisional Jail in Jharkhand appeared to be juveniles. The Jail Superintendent was advised by the concerned Special Rapporteur to look into the matter. 75