Kolkata, August 11, 2021

As a part of observing the Azadi ki Amrit Mahotsav to commemorate the 75th year of India’s independence, CISF, South East Sector is going to participate in the ‘Fit India Freedom run 2.0’ on Thursday, ie., August 13 from the Cellular Jail, Port Blair, A & N Island. The Run is going to start at 7.20 am in the morning. About 100 CISF personnel are going to participate in the run which will follow the Cellular Jail via Netaji Stadium route and be back.  The programme will be organised with due compliance of COVID appropriate behaviour.
It is to be noted that the prison complex was constructed between 1896 and 1906. The British had been using the Andaman Islands as a prison since the days in the immediate aftermath of the Indian Rebellion of 1857. After the rebellion was suppressed, captured prisoners were put on trial, with many of them being executed. Others were exiled for life to the Andamans to prevent them from re-offending. Two hundred rebels were transported to the islands under the custody of the jailer David Barry and Major James Pattison Walker. Another 733 from Karachi arrived at Cellular Jail in April, 1868. More prisoners arrived from India and Burma as the settlement grew. Anyone who belonged to the Mughal royal family, or who had sent a petition to Bahadur Shah Zafar during the Rebellion was liable to be deported to the islands.
Further, renowned freedom fighter Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was sent to the Cellular Jail on July 4, 1911 for 50 years as he revolted against the Morley-Minto Reforms. According to him, freedom fighters had to work hard here. Prisoners had to peel coconut here and extract oil from it. Along with this, they had to extract mustard and coconut oil by blowing like a bull in the crusher here. Apart from this, he also had to level the marshy land and hilly area by clearing the forests adjacent to the prison and outside. On stopping, they were severely punished and beaten up with canes and whips. Even so, he was not even given enough food.
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SSS

(Release ID: 1744890)