Madras Central Prison
prison in India
Madras Central Prison was one of the oldest prisons in India. It was located in Chennai (formerly Madras) in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It became operational during the British Raj period. The prisoners held there were moved to the newly constructed Puzhal Central Prison starting in 2006, with the 172-year-old prison being demolished in June 2009.
History
Madras Central Prison was one of the oldest prisons in India. It was started during British rule in 1837. It was initially called the Madras penitentiary until 1855 when it was renamed to Central Jail. It was originally built to house transit convicts who were to face the 'sazay-e-kaala paani' in Cellular Jail in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and constructed at the cost of Rs 16,496 on 11 acres (45,000 m2) of land.
It is said that the call for independence found its echo more in the Madras Presidency than elsewhere in the princely States. Many of those freedom fighters were arrested and lodged here; it is said a few of them died in custody.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Madras Central Prison” as prison in India. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as prison in India. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 26, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5091430. Authority coordinates are 13.080, 80.273. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2006, 2009, 1837 and 1855.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Madras Central Prison”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Madras Central Prison primary sources, Madras Central Prison archive and Madras research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Madras Central Prison”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Madras Central Prison” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.