Authorities at the Amritsar Central Jail have confiscated 24 mobile phones and several SIM cards from inmates during separate search operations conducted over the past two days.

Following the recoveries, three FIRs were registered under Sections 42 and 52-A of the Prisons Act against the accused inmates.

According to jail authorities, the recoveries were made during routine checking operations carried out inside different barracks of the jail. The repeated seizure of prohibited communication devices from inmates has raised serious concerns over security arrangements and surveillance inside the high-security prison.

In the first case, registered on the complaint of Assistant Superintendent Ajmer Singh, jail officials recovered 11 mobile phones, including one touchscreen and 10 keypad devices, from 11 inmates lodged in the jail.

The second case was registered on the complaint of Assistant Superintendent Sukhdev Singh after nine mobile phones, including seven touchscreen and two keypad devices, along with six SIM cards, were recovered from six inmates.

Similarly, another case was registered on the complaint of Assistant Superintendent Sahib Singh after four keypad mobile phones and one SIM card were allegedly recovered from four inmates during another search operation inside the jail premises.

Police officials said investigations were underway to ascertain how the prohibited items were smuggled into the jail complex. Authorities are also probing the possible involvement of outsiders or jail staff in facilitating the entry of mobile phones into the prison. Throwing mobile phones and other prohibited material over the prison walls remains one of the most common methods used to smuggle such items into the high-security complex.