1,500 prisoners to move to new Islamabad jail: Naqvi

ISLAMABAD: Around 1,500 prisoners from Islamabad currently held at Adiala Jail will be transferred to the newly completed Islamabad Model Jail in the first phase, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Tuesday.

Speaking to the media during a visit to the facility in H-16, Naqvi said the new jail was ready for inauguration by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif within the next two to four days.

Accompanied by State Minister for Interior Talal Chaudhry, the minister said around 3,300 prisoners from Islamabad were currently held at Adiala Jail. The first phase would accommodate 1,500 of them, while the remaining prisoners would be shifted after completion of the project’s second phase.

Naqvi credited Talal Chaudhry, Capital Development Authority (CDA) Chairman and their teams for completing the long-delayed project. He said construction had begun in 2016, although the project was initiated in 2009. By 2024, work had stalled, with only around 40 to 50 per cent of the facility completed.

The project was subsequently handed over to the CDA, which accelerated construction and completed the first phase. The facility has been developed at a cost of approximately Rs7 billion, including funds previously spent by the now-defunct Public Works Department.

The project was initially estimated to cost Rs3.9 billion in 2016, with completion scheduled for 2019. However, administrative and construction delays kept it unfinished for years.

During his visit, Naqvi inspected different sections of the jail, including its 35-bed hospital and kitchen.

Separately, the interior minister reviewed construction work on the Kashmir Chowk underpass and expressed satisfaction with the pace of progress.

The project, worth Rs1.4 billion, was launched on October 6, when the prime minister laid its foundation stone. Officials said approximately 75 per cent of the work had been completed within 18 days.

Naqvi said the underpass could be completed in less than 30 days if construction continued at the current pace. CDA officials said the project could be finished before November 5.

The two projects are part of ongoing efforts to improve Islamabad’s infrastructure and public facilities, with the new jail expected to ease pressure on existing prison facilities.