The North News
Chandigarh, December 24
Punjab has approved the direct recruitment of 532 personnel for its Prisons Department in an effort to strengthen jail security and ease staffing pressures, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said on Wednesday. The recruitment drive will include 475 warders and 57 matrons, filling vacancies that have remained unoccupied for more than a year. Cheema said the appointments would be carried out through the Subordinate Services Selection Board, running alongside an ongoing process to recruit another 471 prison staff.
He added that the approval also takes into account seven warder posts expected to fall vacant due to retirements by the end of December 2026, allowing the department to plan staffing levels in advance.
While a broader restructuring of the Prisons Department is still under way, the finance minister said the immediate hiring was essential to maintain operational stability. Chronic staff shortages, he noted, had forced existing personnel to work double shifts in several jails.
Cheema said the move reflected the commitment of the government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann to ensure that correctional facilities are adequately staffed. He added that the recruitment would not only reduce the workload on current employees but also replace temporary arrangements with regular appointments, while creating stable employment opportunities for young people in the state.
