Buxar jail ready with 'Manila' rope for Afzal

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Buxar: The Buxar Central Jail is ready to supply its famed "Manila" rope for the hanging of Mohammed Afzal Guru, facing execution for his role in the 2001 Parliament attack, if his clemency petition is dismissed.
The jail has expertise in making the wax-coated manila rope that it sells for Rs 180 a kg and which can easily withstand the tension caused by the fall of a person weighing up to 80 kg sent, its Superintendent I H Ansari told PTI today.

"We are ready with the supplies if Tihar jail authorities place an order which they have not so far," Ansari said.

Stating that a lot of care goes into making the rope to ensure that a hanging is a smooth affair, Ansari said the jail produced several kinds of ropes used with handcuffs and for pitching tents. Clothes and durries are also woven by its inmates.

The last time a "Manila" rope was sent from Buxar jail was in 2004 for the hanging of Dhananjay Chatterjee at Alipore Jail following his conviction in a rape-cum-murder case.

The jail, probably the only one in the country making manila rope, supplies several types of ropes to different jails.

The demand for "Manila" rope, however, has diminished as there are few executions these days, Ansari said.