Around 250 illiterate inmates of the Fatehpur prison will be taught to read and write under the guidance of 11 educated ones, officials said on Tuesday. A verandah in front of the barrack has been turned into a classroom and a blackboard will be installed there, Superintendent of Fatehpur district prison Mohd Akram Khan told PTI.

"There are 1,400 inmates in the jail of which 250 illiterate ones have been screened through counselling. Eleven educated inmates of the jail have been made their teachers," he said. Classes will be held every day from 12 noon to 2 pm, Khan added. Materials required for the classroom will be provided by a social welfare organisation of Fatehpur, and the help of prison staff will also be taken for it, the official said.

Khan said it has often been seen that it is because of the lack of education that people commit crimes. Efforts will be made to ensure that once they come out of prison, they are able to get some employment and join the mainstream, he added.