After Tihar Jail, cutting edge 5G Network Jammers in Amritsar Central Jail
Rashmi Talwar
After Tihar Jail, cutting edge 5G Network Jammers in Amritsar Central Jail
Center gives nod for jammers to be operative from 10th June
Rashmi Talwar
AMRITSAR June 3, 2023—-
The Amritsar Central Jail will become the first jail in Punjab to install Hi-fi 5G network jammer Technology, in its prison premises. The cutting-edge Jammer technology is only installed in New Delhi’s Central Tihar Jail. Amritsar will thus be the second in the country to adopt the new technology.
Amritsar Central Jail is merely 20 Km from the International Border (IB) in this sector. It was detected that a part of the vigorous multi-crore drug trade as well as the smuggling of arms and ammunition was being operated from jail premises of this district bordering Pakistan. Presently, advanced drone technology had intensified the drug smuggling racket with drug hauls seized in Kilograms instead of grammes, worth millions in the International markets.
“Drones have become game-changers in the drug trade with up to 10 Kgs drops in a single drone sortie”, revealed a senior defense official. Arms and Ammunition smuggling is another lucrative illegal trade being carried on. Alongside, are other comparatively lesser crimes like the land, sand, transport, assassination, and other mafias that facilitate and fund illegal activities including terror funding, and drug smuggling; are being controlled and masterminded from the jail premises via mobile phones. In order to break this communication network by the criminals, being run from inside the jail, jammer installations started with 2G to 3G mobile networks in the jails of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir.
However, despite earlier jammer systems, mobile phones were seized in huge quantities in Punjab jails along the Indo-Pak border. At present Punjab has 25 jails including 7 Central Jails, Jammu &Kashmir with 15 Jails. Seizing mobiles from jail inmates meant network jammers were ‘ineffective’ and were being ‘bypassed’ to operate mobiles in jail premises.
However, with this new technology, Jammers which are undergoing a testing period, will become fully functional from June 10.
Incidentally, this system called the “ Harmonious Call Blocking System” (THBS), is installed in Delhi’s Tihar Jail. The Punjab government was guided by Union Home Ministry to take this step. Jammers were installed earlier in 3-jails of Punjab, but they were of 2G-3G level. They were not able to jam the network of 5G technology. Taking advantage of this, gangsters and smugglers ran nefarious networks from jails.
Amritsar Central Jail Superintendent Surinder Singh said that after the installation of jammers in the jail, the mobiles of the security personnel in the jail would also be switched off. Security personnel will transmit any information to each other through walkie-talkies. The WiFi facility will be available only in one place and that is in the superintendent’s office. Apart from this, no one’s mobile will operate. This facility will be provided to the superintendent so that information about any government orders can reach his office.
THBS, is an advanced mobile jammer technology installed in the jail premises. The tower installed in the jail premises will jam any incoming or outgoing call operations, and not transmit to other towers. The company installing and fitting the jammers is also keeping in sight that the network of people outside the jail premises does not get affected by it. It is expected that with this device, the crime graph of a significant spread of the area will reduce and come under the control of security agencies. Earlier Criminals were openly talking to the jail inmates and other staff.
Effect on areas around jails
Jammers are known to be more effective in open areas. Due to this, it is expected that Network problems will be felt in residential areas around the jails. The jammers that will be installed in the jails of Punjab and Jammu Kashmir will block 2G to 5G networks. People may have to install Wi-Fi in their homes and offices near jails to operate and communicate on mobile phones and laptops besides other devices.
Administration active after ransom calls from jail and gang wars
After increasing occurrences of extortion, threatening incidents, gang wars, gangsters, and frequent drug trafficking incidents came to the fore in the jails of Punjab, the need for advanced technology jammers was sorely being felt. From June 10th onwards, from the police administration to the jail administration, mobile ringing in jails will be a rarity. Alongside, a separate control room would be set up in the jail to control jammers, wherein jail administration will keep control. It will also be insured that the jammers cannot be switched on or off from jail premises with the connivance of the jail personnel, facilitating criminals to communicate outside. This is expected to curb and break the networks of jailed gangsters, drug smugglers, criminals, and anti-socials.
Mobiles were recovered frequently from the prisoners and lock-ups in the Amritsar jails every day. Because of this notorious gangsters and drug smugglers sitting in jail operated and controlled a network of crimes by colleagues sitting outside. After the jammers become operative even if an inmate possesses a mobile phone in the jail, it will remain just a dummy due to jammers.
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Posted by Saanjh WorldTravel 
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