Pune: Yerawada Prison Staff Among 2,000 Maharashtra Jail Employees Face Salary Delay As Govt Fails to Extend Temporary Posts

Pune, 13th October 2026: Around 2,000 officers and employees of Maharashtra’s prison department have not received their September salaries as the state government has failed to extend their temporary posts on time.

With half of October already gone, the delay has left employees struggling to pay home and vehicle loan instalments, meet their children’s education expenses and manage household costs. They have urged the government to approve the extension of their posts at the earliest.

The salary delay comes during the festive season, with Navratri underway, Dussehra approaching and Diwali scheduled for next month. Employees said the uncertainty has added to their financial stress, making it difficult to meet routine expenses and plan celebrations with their families.

Maharashtra has 60 prisons, including nine central prisons, 28 district prisons and 19 open prisons, besides a special women’s prison, a juvenile correctional facility and a children’s correctional home.

In view of the growing number of prisons and the increasing pressure of the inmate population, the government created around 2,000 new posts in the department over the past one to two years.

Under government guidelines, posts that have not completed three years are classified as temporary and require an extension every six months. Salaries are released after the extension is approved. Once the posts complete three years, they are treated as permanent.

The temporary posts cover a range of positions, from senior prison officials, including inspectors general and superintendents, to prison guards.

However, the government has not granted the required extension for these posts in recent days, resulting in the September salary payments being withheld. Employees have called for an immediate decision to resolve the issue.