KATHMANDU: Twenty-seven inmates died in six months of the current fiscal year across the country. They reportedly lost their lives to various diseases.

Majority of the deaths took place at the Central Jail, Jagannath Dewal, Kathmandu.

According to Hari Prasad Mainali, Director General at the Department of Prison Management, most of the deaths occurred from ageing.

The central jail has been providing medical and healthcare services to the inmates through a 30-bed health facility inside the prison. They are also providing services to the patients in need by referring them to other government hospitals such as Bir Hospital, Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH), Patan Mental Hospital, and Shahid Gangalal National Heart Centre based on severity of their diseases.

Presently, there are around 21,000 inmates across the country and among them 3,000 are kept in custody at the central jail.