The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has revised the Support to Poor Prisoners scheme after seeing slow action from many States and Union Territories. Launched in 2023, the scheme helps poor prisoners who cannot pay court fines or bail money. But many places did not implement it well. To fix this, the MHA now has new guidelines with fixed deadlines and senior officers involved. The scheme aims to free indigent prisoners stuck only because they can't pay fines. Under new rules, the district Empowered Committee will include a District Collector’s nominee and a prison judge. When a prisoner cannot pay a fine, the Jail Superintendent must inform the District Legal Services Authority secretary within one week. The secretary will check the prisoner's financial status and recommend assistance. The Committee can approve up to ₹25,000 to pay fines and get the prisoner released. This also works for eligible undertrial prisoners. However, the scheme excludes certain serious crimes. It does not apply to cases related to corruption, money laundering, drug offences, terrorism, national security crimes, dowry deaths, rape, human trafficking, or child sexual offences under POCSO. The MHA has ordered strict adherence to these exclusions. This updated plan aims to reduce prison overcrowding and ease poor prisoners’ suffering. The Centre has allocated ₹20 crore to support this cause.