Prisons across the country hold one lakh inmates more than their capacity, according to the latest government data.

While the total capacity of 1,336 jails is 2,63,911, the facilities had 3,73,271 inmates, the report by the National Crime Records Bureau for 2006 said.

Among the total inmates in the country, males accounted for 3,58,614, which is 96.1 per cent of the total prison population.

The capital reported the highest overcrowding of prisoners with 214.4 per cent followed by Gujarat (206.9 pc) and Chhattisgarh (195.5 pc).

Delhi [Images] jails were housing 13,400 prisoners as against a capacity of 6,250 in 2006.

The highest number of inmates was from Uttar Pradesh [Images], which accounted for 66,669 followed by Bihar with 44,281 at the end of 2006.

UP accounted also for highest number of convicts (16,289) lodged in jail followed by Madhya Pradesh [Images] (15,215).

Murder alone accounted for 68 per cent of the total convicts under IPC crime, the NCRB data said, adding the highest per cent of murder convicts was reported from MP (15.6).

Out of a total of 1,16,675 convicts lodged in various jails, 36,337 were illiterate while 62,932 have education up to tenth class.