Lucknow, Jan 8 (IANS): Convicts in cases of petty crime that have shown good conduct in jail and those who are elderly will soon be set free by the Uttar Pradesh government.

The process of selection of such inmates will include those sentenced to serve less than seven years of jail for crimes which they had confessed to have committed and pleaded mercy.

It will also include inmates who have not received any visitors in the last 12 months and are deemed to have been abandoned by their families.

According to official sources, the prison department is preparing a list of undertrial prisoners lodged in 62 jails and Bandi Nari Niketan in the state.

A senior official said that it will reduce the number of undertrial prisoners to a minimum.

He said that officials of the prison department have been given instructions to provide a list of prisoners with less than seven years' sentence in each jail. They have been asked to offer suggestions. The files of such prisoners are sought at the headquarters.

A list of trade-wise trained prisoners is also sought from the superintendents of all jails in the state. This will help the government in their rehabilitation.

According to jail officials, all prisoners lodged in jails are not professional criminals.

Therefore, it is important to treat them with humanity so they can walk out with a better mindset and skills and merge back with mainstream society.