Chhapra, Feb 23: Thirteen prisoners have escaped from Chhapra jail in Bihar. The prisoners reportedly used a ladder to scale the jail wall and exploded bombs to intimidate the security staff.
A sentry and two prisoners have been seriously injured in the incident.
The mastermind behind the escape is believed to be one R K Chaudhry who executed the entire plan from outside the jail premises. He has dozens of cases of murder, loot and dacoity pending against him.
This is the second major incident of jailbreak in Bihar within a fortnight. On February 13, gunmen had opened fire and exploded a bomb at the Danapur sub-jail, near the state capital to facilitate the escape of four inmates.
While last Tuesday, Phoolan Devi's killer had escaped from Delhi's high-security Tihar jail. But despite the escape, Tihar is probably India's best-maintained jail.

The Moradabad jail is about the size of two large bungalows and has a single concrete wall that separates the prisoners from the world outside.
It has a rickety main gate, with a solitary sentry guarding it and a wooden door on the inside, manned by three jawans.
This single wall jail in Moradabad was built in the 1820s to hold 500 prisoners. It currently houses over 1800!


Jail authorities however claim that over 80 percent or close to 1400 of those inside are undertrials. In fact the jail is so over crowded, that bunkers have been broken down to accommodate prisoners.
There is only a small dispensary in terms of medical care, which is why inmates often have to be taken to another hospital for treatment, proving to be security nightmare for those guarding them.
The police say that the jail is so ill equipped, that they have no other option but to shift even doubtful cases of illnesses to the hospital.
"We have to obey the honourable court and shift these prisoners to the hospital," said Dr G K Goswamy, SSP, Moradabad.
And bound by only a thick jute rope, prisoners find it easy to get away from the hospital.

The same tactic was used by Shyam Singh, an undertrial being treated for a psychiatric illness. Singh slowly burnt the rope he was tied with using matches.
While the police managed to catch Shyam within hours, security lapses like these could have serious consequences.
Clearly, it will require more than just cosmetic changes to make jails in the country more secure and inhabitable.
Bureau Report