It's Always Possible: One Woman's Transformation of India's Prison System [Paperback]

Kiran Bedi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 31, 2006

This book tells of the transformation of one of Asia’s largest jails—Tihar prison. Before Kiran Bedi became the warden of Tihar in 1993, it was a hellish place where 8,300 inmates in a prison designed for 2,500 lived with corruption, gang wars, illness, filth, and hopelessness. Today, thanks to her stunning reforms, it is more ashram than prison. Half the book is devoted to a detailed account of the situation Bedi found when first appointed. The other half is devoted to describing the process of "human interaction" that she emphasized was key to bringing about the transformation. By the time Bedi left there were councils in each ward, self-governance by prisoners, daily activities like yoga, literacy programs, playrooms for children, a university course, and most important of all, vispassana meditation. Bedi describes the tools she and likeminded colleagues used to bring order and peace out of chaos and despair. Interspersed with conversations from inmates, this book is a powerful story of redemption, faith, and hope for a better future. It can serve as an inspirational guidebook to all who wish to overcome enormous obstacles.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Kiran Bedi Ph.D. is a trailblazer, admired and loved by many in India. She broke new ground by joining the élite Indian Police Service in 1972, being the first woman in India to do so. She is today the most celebrated police officer, having been awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for government service, also called the Asian Nobel Prize, the Joseph Beuys Award by a German foundation and the Asia Region Award for Drug Prevention & Control by the International organization of Good Templars (IOGT) a Norwegian organization. Besides her professional contributions, two voluntary organizations were founded and supervised by her—Navjyoti, established in 1988, and the India Vision Foundation in 1994. These organizations reach out to thousands of poor children daily for primary education, to women for adult literacy, provide vocational training and counseling services in the slums, rural areas and inside the prison apart from treatment for drug addiction. She and her organizations today stand nationally and internationally recognized, with the latest award being given by the United Nations—the Serge Sotiroff Memorial Award for drug abuse prevention. Born into an extraordinary family with visionary parents, Kiran is the second of four daughters. She has been an Asian tennis champion, holds a law degree, has a Doctorate in the field of drug abuse and domestic violence, an author and the subject of various books and films.

Product Details

• Paperback: 302 pages
• Publisher: Himalayan Inst Press (March 31, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0893892580
• ISBN-13: 978-0893892586
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #736,392 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Transformation of prison, April 16, 2011

By 

lizzieII - See all my reviews

This review is from: It's Always Possible: One Woman's Transformation of India's Prison System (Paperback)

An inspiring account of how Kiran Bedi achieved the impossible and transformed Delhi prison into a more wholesome, functional and educational environment for the benefit of the inmates and the society into which they would eventually be released. Highly recommended.

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars India Oh India, July 4, 2009

By 

B. Hoyt (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: It's Always Possible: One Woman's Transformation of India's Prison System (Paperback)

Interesting account of what is is like in an Indian Jail. Unfortunately, I left the book in the Emergency Room of a hospital before I was finished reading it. But I recommend reading it.