The state and UT authorities held special functions at prisons based on "teachings of Mahatma Gandhi"

The government has decided to release 611 prisoners from jails across India under a special remission as part of the commemoration of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

"With the release of 611 prisoners on October 2, the total number of prisoners released as part of the special remission has gone up to 2,035 in the last one year," a senior officer of the Home Ministry told NDTV, asking not to be named. "It's a project very close to heart of the Prime Minister," he added.

The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in July last year decided that special remission to specific category of prisoners may be given and they may be released in three phases on October 2, 2018, and April 6 and October 2, 2019.

In the first phase on October 2 last year, the states and Union Territories released 919 prisoners.

In the second phase on April 6, some 505 prisoners were released.

In the third phase of the special remission programme on October 2, the states and Union Territories have released 611 prisoners, the official said.

The state and UT authorities were asked to hold special functions at all prisons based on the "teachings of Mahatma Gandhi" before the prisoners were released.

"They were also asked to take the prisoners to a statue of Mahatma Gandhi to garland it. They were to be gifted books on Mahatma Gandhi's life," another official said.

Women convicts who are 55 years and above, and male convicts older than 60 years, who have completed half of their sentence, and a few other categories of prisoners came under the amnesty scheme.

However, the special remission was not given to people convicted for an offence for which the sentence is death penalty, or where death sentence has been commuted to life imprisonment.