Recently, residents around the Amritsar Central Jail held a large-scale protest to express their strong dissatisfaction with the impact of mobile signal jammers on daily communications. These prison signal jammers were originally installed to target illegal activities in the prison, but they have had a serious impact on the lives of more than 15,000 residents nearby
Residents protest: life is disrupted by prison jammers
The protest was successfully carried out outside the Central Jail in Amritsar on September 2, led by Harvinder Singh Sandhu, the district president of the BJP in the area. The protest raised the slogan of withdrawing the use of high power prison jammers. They said that the coverage of mobile signal jammers exceeded the boundaries of the prison and seriously affected the normal life of several nearby communities.
Signal jammers on Jabal Road have had a wide-ranging impact on the lives and work of different groups of people:
| Residents’ Voices | Avtar Singh Bhullar said that as residents who have lived here for generations, they are disappointed that the government has taken radical measures without fully considering the impact on the community. He pointed out that the prison authorities have failed to pay attention to the basic communication rights of nearby residents, resulting in the impact on their lives. |
| Dilemma of merchants | Many small merchants rely on mobile phones to communicate with customers, and the presence of signal jammers has hit their businesses hard. Due to the inability to communicate effectively, customers are lost and business has dropped significantly. Merchants have said that the loss of mobile phone signals means that orders cannot be processed and customers’ needs cannot be responded to in a timely manner. |
| Challenges for students and teachers | Students and teachers are among the most affected groups. Ramanpreet Kaur pointed out that students’ inability to contact teachers has seriously hampered their studies. Modern education is increasingly dependent on digital platforms and social media. The presence of jammers makes it difficult for students to seek help and obtain information, affecting the normal learning and teaching progress. |
| Farmers' troubles | In addition, farmers are also affected by signal interference. They usually rely on mobile phones to contact markets and suppliers. Under the interference of jammers, farmers find it difficult to communicate effectively, resulting in the impact on the sale and supply chain of agricultural products. |
Prison authorities' response: Jammer devices must be installed for safety
The management of the Central Jail explained the reason for installing jammer blockers. According to prison officials, the problem of contraband in prisons has become more serious in recent years, especially the smuggling of mobile phones and drugs. The prison is close to densely populated residential areas, which makes contraband smuggled into the prison by various means. To this end, the government installed advanced mobile phone signal jammers in the prison in June last year, which aims to block 2G to 5G signals and prevent prisoners from using mobile phones to illegally contact the outside world.
"Inside the prison, we have seized a large number of contraband items, especially mobile phones. These jammer devices are an effective means to prevent criminals from using modern technology to carry out criminal activities," said a prison official. At the same time, they also realized that the signal coverage of the prison phone jammers exceeded the boundaries of the prison, but in order to ensure the safety and order of the prison, they had no choice.
Government should consider relocating the prison
As protests grow, residents are asking the government to reconsider the location of the prison and even suggest moving it out of the area. Some protesters say the presence of the prison and the use of signal jammers have seriously affected residents' daily lives and livelihoods.
"The government should reassess the location of the prison to avoid causing unnecessary distress to residents," added Avtar Singh. Many believe that relocating the prison may be the only way to completely solve the problem, as existing jammer technology is still difficult to work effectively within the confines of a prison.
