IIPM Prof Arindam Chaudhuri on Our Parliament and Parliamentarians' Work
Inmates of Gujarat's Sabarmati jail and other prisons develop a new taste for life, reports Rupesh Panchal
Ahmedabad is in the grip of a severe heat wave. The roads wear a deserted look. Many areas of the city look as if they are under curfew. But the scene outside a nondescript food stall near the historic Sabarmati Jail is very different. Even at noon, people wait in a queue to buy hot bhajiya here.
The clientele is varied, but they are all united by their passion for these pakoras that are rustled up by inmates of the jail. 'Jail Bhajiya House' is the favourite haunt of Ahmedabad's snack lovers.
In 2009-10 alone, Jail Bhajiya House achieved a turnover of around Rs 70 lakh. The daily sales are to the tune of Rs 25,000. And the total turnover of bhajiya business run by prisoners across Gujarat jails is a whopping Rs 1.27 crore.
Chandubhai Prajapati, who earned name and fame at Jail Bhajiya House outside Sabarmati Jail, now runs his own venture. Before being sentenced to life in 1983 in a triple murder case along with infamous criminal Babu Bhaiya, he owned a small hotel in Bapunagar area of Ahmedabad.
In his first month in jail, Chandubhai offered help to the jail authorities in preparing delicious bhajiya and other savouries. 'In 1998, the then jail superintendent V.T. Gautam proposed to the then IG (Prison) Vijay Guman that a tea and bhajiya stall could be started outside the jail with Chandubhai's help. The IG approved the idea. The enterprise was an instant hit,' says a senior jail officer.
In just three days, the bhajiya stall made a killing. Senior officers were enthused to take the experiment forward. The bhajiya made by prisoners attracted a steady stream of customers who would queue up outside the food stall everyday. Today jail bhajiya is a household name.
Apart from bhajiya, the prisoners make other popular snacks like fafda-jalebi and managed the sales from the outlet close to the jail. One-time murderers, molesters and marauders found solace in the business of pakoras. Their enthusiasm hasn't waned one bit in all these years. The stall is manned by inmates of Sabarmati Jail. They are brought out from their cells after securing special permission from the Gujarat home department. The jail authorities said only convicts with very good conduct work in the stall. Four teams of ten convicts each work in rotation for a month. None of these notorious criminals serving life terms for offences like murder and rape have never attempted to flee. Says Veluji Saguji Zala, serving a life sentence for murder: 'When I was jailed I thought my life was over. But making bhajiya has given me a new reason to live. Nothing gives me more happiness than seeing satisfied customers. Why would I ever even think of escaping from this place?"
Manish Sukhadiya has a different story to tell. He was booked for dowry harassment and abetting suicide. He was in the food business before he landed up in jail. Making bhajiyas came easy to him. But he has learnt new skills in jail. 'When I return to my business, the lessons I have learnt here will stand me in good stead,' he says.
The inmates take the bhajiya business seriously. They are aware of what consumers want. So they always take appropriate care to ensure quality. By making bhajiya, each prisoner-turned-cook earns Rs 35 daily. Half that amount goes directly into an account each prisoner has at the post office, and the remaining half is retained for personal expenses.
While most of these men engaged in Jail Bhajiya House intend to return their earlier professions once they are free, some have taken the cue from the concept to turn entrepreneurs after their release. After completing his life term for triple murder, Chandu Prajapati set up his own food stall near Jail Bhajiya House where he spent a good deal of his life.
It was the success of the Sabarmati Jail Bhajiya House that got the other jails to replicate it. Apart from Ahmedabad, other prominent jails also achieved good sales of bhajiyas (Rajkot jail ' Rs 82,799, Surat jail ' Rs 47,57,420 and Himmatnagar jail ' Rs 10,26,935).
But bhajiya is not the only thing the prisoners make. Equipped through workshops and training programmes, the prisoners are now gainfully employed in a variety of activities such as making towels, textiles, tents, coats, bags, leather shoes, book-binding, screen printing, cooking bhajiyas, puffs, biscuits, bread, making phenyl, teak furniture, folders, and more. The products are of superior quality and the kitchens maintain an exceptionally high standard of hygiene. All the bhajiya house workers wear uniform and headgear. In the year 2009-10, through bhajiya, bakery items, carpeting, press related work, tailoring, weaving and other works, the jails across the state achieved a total turnover of Rs 7 crore.
The best part is the positive use of the prisoners. Talking to TSI, Additional DGP (Prison) P.C. Thakur says: 'These men are not born criminals. They commit crimes and get punished. But rehabilitating them is our core responsibility. To create a peaceful and prosperous society, we have to make them good and responsible citizens. And that is exactly what we are doing. The prisoners are positively employed. More significantly, they are equipped with a set of skills that will enable them to integrate back into society once they are out, and they will be able to earn for themselves.'
Jail Bhajiya House is now all set to sport a new look. Under the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation's town planning scheme, the existing snack outlet is in line for demolition.
A few months back, a new bhajiya outlet was inaugurated at the nearby RTO Circle but its design was not quite satisfactory. Hence, students of National Institute of Design are designing a new outlet which will give the snack shop a professional feel. The Jail Bhajiya House is also going through brand-building exercise.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM BBA MBA Institute: Student Notice Board
Run after passion and not money, says Arindam Chaudhuri
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IIPM Lucknow – News article in Economic Times and Times of India
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IIPM Prof Rajita Chaudhuri's Snaps
Inmates of Gujarat's Sabarmati jail and other prisons develop a new taste for life, reports Rupesh Panchal
Ahmedabad is in the grip of a severe heat wave. The roads wear a deserted look. Many areas of the city look as if they are under curfew. But the scene outside a nondescript food stall near the historic Sabarmati Jail is very different. Even at noon, people wait in a queue to buy hot bhajiya here.
The clientele is varied, but they are all united by their passion for these pakoras that are rustled up by inmates of the jail. 'Jail Bhajiya House' is the favourite haunt of Ahmedabad's snack lovers.
In 2009-10 alone, Jail Bhajiya House achieved a turnover of around Rs 70 lakh. The daily sales are to the tune of Rs 25,000. And the total turnover of bhajiya business run by prisoners across Gujarat jails is a whopping Rs 1.27 crore.
Chandubhai Prajapati, who earned name and fame at Jail Bhajiya House outside Sabarmati Jail, now runs his own venture. Before being sentenced to life in 1983 in a triple murder case along with infamous criminal Babu Bhaiya, he owned a small hotel in Bapunagar area of Ahmedabad.
In his first month in jail, Chandubhai offered help to the jail authorities in preparing delicious bhajiya and other savouries. 'In 1998, the then jail superintendent V.T. Gautam proposed to the then IG (Prison) Vijay Guman that a tea and bhajiya stall could be started outside the jail with Chandubhai's help. The IG approved the idea. The enterprise was an instant hit,' says a senior jail officer.
In just three days, the bhajiya stall made a killing. Senior officers were enthused to take the experiment forward. The bhajiya made by prisoners attracted a steady stream of customers who would queue up outside the food stall everyday. Today jail bhajiya is a household name.
Apart from bhajiya, the prisoners make other popular snacks like fafda-jalebi and managed the sales from the outlet close to the jail. One-time murderers, molesters and marauders found solace in the business of pakoras. Their enthusiasm hasn't waned one bit in all these years. The stall is manned by inmates of Sabarmati Jail. They are brought out from their cells after securing special permission from the Gujarat home department. The jail authorities said only convicts with very good conduct work in the stall. Four teams of ten convicts each work in rotation for a month. None of these notorious criminals serving life terms for offences like murder and rape have never attempted to flee. Says Veluji Saguji Zala, serving a life sentence for murder: 'When I was jailed I thought my life was over. But making bhajiya has given me a new reason to live. Nothing gives me more happiness than seeing satisfied customers. Why would I ever even think of escaping from this place?"
Manish Sukhadiya has a different story to tell. He was booked for dowry harassment and abetting suicide. He was in the food business before he landed up in jail. Making bhajiyas came easy to him. But he has learnt new skills in jail. 'When I return to my business, the lessons I have learnt here will stand me in good stead,' he says.
The inmates take the bhajiya business seriously. They are aware of what consumers want. So they always take appropriate care to ensure quality. By making bhajiya, each prisoner-turned-cook earns Rs 35 daily. Half that amount goes directly into an account each prisoner has at the post office, and the remaining half is retained for personal expenses.
While most of these men engaged in Jail Bhajiya House intend to return their earlier professions once they are free, some have taken the cue from the concept to turn entrepreneurs after their release. After completing his life term for triple murder, Chandu Prajapati set up his own food stall near Jail Bhajiya House where he spent a good deal of his life.
It was the success of the Sabarmati Jail Bhajiya House that got the other jails to replicate it. Apart from Ahmedabad, other prominent jails also achieved good sales of bhajiyas (Rajkot jail ' Rs 82,799, Surat jail ' Rs 47,57,420 and Himmatnagar jail ' Rs 10,26,935).
But bhajiya is not the only thing the prisoners make. Equipped through workshops and training programmes, the prisoners are now gainfully employed in a variety of activities such as making towels, textiles, tents, coats, bags, leather shoes, book-binding, screen printing, cooking bhajiyas, puffs, biscuits, bread, making phenyl, teak furniture, folders, and more. The products are of superior quality and the kitchens maintain an exceptionally high standard of hygiene. All the bhajiya house workers wear uniform and headgear. In the year 2009-10, through bhajiya, bakery items, carpeting, press related work, tailoring, weaving and other works, the jails across the state achieved a total turnover of Rs 7 crore.
The best part is the positive use of the prisoners. Talking to TSI, Additional DGP (Prison) P.C. Thakur says: 'These men are not born criminals. They commit crimes and get punished. But rehabilitating them is our core responsibility. To create a peaceful and prosperous society, we have to make them good and responsible citizens. And that is exactly what we are doing. The prisoners are positively employed. More significantly, they are equipped with a set of skills that will enable them to integrate back into society once they are out, and they will be able to earn for themselves.'
Jail Bhajiya House is now all set to sport a new look. Under the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation's town planning scheme, the existing snack outlet is in line for demolition.
A few months back, a new bhajiya outlet was inaugurated at the nearby RTO Circle but its design was not quite satisfactory. Hence, students of National Institute of Design are designing a new outlet which will give the snack shop a professional feel. The Jail Bhajiya House is also going through brand-building exercise.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM BBA MBA Institute: Student Notice Board
Run after passion and not money, says Arindam Chaudhuri
Award Conferred To Irom Chanu Sharmila By IIPM
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
IIPM Lucknow – News article in Economic Times and Times of India
Prof Rajita Chaudhuri follow some off-beat trends like organizing make up sessions
