A total of 15,000 inmates addicted to drugs in Sri Lanka will be enrolled in rehabilitation programmes in 2024, a State Minister said on Thursday.Addressing a press conference at the Presidential Media Centre, State Minister of Justice and Prison Affairs Anuradha Jayaratne said rehabilitated inmates will also be given vocational training.
Jayaratne said the Mnistry has acquired 22 buildings, on a 22-acre land that previously belonged to the Sugar Corporation, to rehabilitate addicted inmates.
A separate 6-acre rehabilitation centre for women will also be established in Vavuniya in Sri Lanka’s Northern Province, Jayaratne said.
A recent report by the National Audit Office has shown 53 percent of total inmates were incarcerated on drug-related offences with the majority of prisoners aged between 30 and 40.