Bogambara Prison begins receiving inmates as prison overcrowding persists

By The Pulseline News Desk

The transfer of inmates to Bogambara Prison has begun as authorities move to temporarily expand available prison capacity amid severe overcrowding across Sri Lanka’s prison system.

Prisons Spokesperson Chanaka Pallethenna has said 100 inmates have so far been transferred to Bogambara Prison, with around 1,000 inmates from the Colombo Remand Prison and Magazine Prison expected to be moved there temporarily.

The transfers come as the country’s prisons continue to accommodate a large number of remand prisoners. Pallethenna has said approximately 25,000 remand suspects are currently being held in prisons across the country, while the total prison population stands at around 36,000.

The use of Bogambara is expected to provide temporary relief to overcrowded facilities, particularly in Colombo, where remand facilities have been under sustained pressure.

From historic prison to temporary detention facility

Bogambara Prison in Kandy was one of Sri Lanka’s oldest and most prominent prisons. The facility was closed as a functioning prison in 2014, after authorities began relocating inmates to the new Dumbara Bogambara Prison Complex in Pallekele.

The historic Bogambara site has since been considered for redevelopment, with proposals involving tourism, commercial and other public uses.

The decision to bring the facility back into temporary use for inmates comes against the backdrop of persistent overcrowding in Sri Lanka’s prisons, driven largely by the high number of remand prisoners.

The scale of the remand population has placed pressure on prison infrastructure, staff and resources, while also raising broader concerns about the use of custodial detention for suspects who have not been convicted.

The latest transfers are therefore intended as a short-term capacity measure rather than a permanent solution to the country’s prison overcrowding problem.

With approximately 25,000 people being held on remand, the figures indicate that remand custody accounts for a substantial share of Sri Lanka’s overall prison population.

Authorities will now use Bogambara to accommodate a portion of the inmates currently held in Colombo facilities, with the initial transfer already under way.

The move highlights the continuing pressure on the prison system and the need for longer-term measures to address overcrowding, including improvements to prison infrastructure and broader measures relating to remand detention.