Pramesh S Jain
The Karnataka Cabinet’s decision to equip prisons with AI-based surveillance cameras and portable signal jammers has triggered fresh concern among residents living around Parappana Agrahara Central Prison,who say the existing jammer system is already disrupting mobile and internet services in the surrounding residential areas.
Home Minister Priyank Kharge on Friday said the Cabinet,chaired by Chief Minister,D.K.Shivakumar,had approved the installation of advanced security equipment,including AI cameras,portable jammers and a Prisoner Calling System,as part of the modernisation of the prison department.
The move is aimed at strengthening surveillance and preventing unauthorised communication and other activities inside prisons.
The proposed technology will allow prison authorities to monitor premises more effectively while regulated calling facilities are expected to provide inmates with controlled access to telephone services.
However,residents around Parappana Agrahara fear that the proposed expansion of jamming technology could worsen an issue they have been raising with the authorities for months.
“We are unable to make emergency calls or even place online orders because OTPs do not arrive on time.
The jammers appear to be blocking signals outside the prison rather than being confined to the prison premises,”said Arivarasu,a resident and employee of a private firm.
According to residents,mobile connectivity becomes particularly unreliable in the areas surrounding the prison, affecting phone calls,OTP-based transactions, Wi-Fi connectivity and other internet-dependent services.
Residents claim they have approached senior prison officials,the Home Minister,MPs and MLAs seeking a solution,but the problem continues.
MP raises issue with Centre
The issue had also reached Parliament. Prof.Dr.C.N. Manjunath,Member of Parliament from Bengaluru Rural, wrote to Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia seeking intervention over the disruption of mobile and internet services around Parappana Agrahara Central Prison.
In his representation dated July 21,2026,Manjunath referred to his earlier communication of September 24, 2025,and said residents had continued to complain about interference caused by high-frequency mobile phone jammers installed inside the prison.
He said the interference was affecting not only mobile communication but also 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi networks and Bluetooth services in adjoining residential areas.
The MP acknowledged the need for jammers to prevent inmates from using mobile phones for unlawful communication,but said the technology should not cause undue interference to legitimate services used by residents.
According to the representation,the disruption has affected emergency services,healthcare,digital banking, online education,work-from-home professionals, businesses and routine communication.
Manjunath urged the Centre to examine the matter in consultation with the Department of Telecommunications,prison authorities and technical agencies responsible for the jammer installation, and explore measures to contain the jamming effect within the prison premises.
Security versus public connectivity:
The Cabinet decision has therefore brought back the long-standing dilemma surrounding prison jammers: how to prevent inmates from using unauthorised mobile phones without cutting off legitimate communication for people living outside the prison.
While the government is seeking to strengthen prison security through AI surveillance and portable jammers, residents around Parappana Agrahara want the technology to be calibrated so that its impact does not spill over into residential neighbourhoods.
For residents, the latest Cabinet announcement has raised a simple question—if the existing jammers are already affecting connectivity outside the prison, will portable jammers make the problem worse unless effective technical safeguards are put in place?.
