New Delhi, July 17 -- The Supreme Court on Thursday directed all states and Union territories to formulate and notify, within three months, a comprehensive policy for early or premature release of prisoners who are terminally ill or of advanced age, holding that incarceration cannot be allowed to degenerate into "institutional neglect" incompatible with the Constitution. In a ruling aimed at infusing greater humanity into India's prison administration, a bench of justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta said the continued incarceration of terminally ill and elderly prisoners, in the absence of a structured and transparent mechanism for their release or palliative care, raises "fundamental questions about proportionality, dignity and the moral legitimacy of punishment itself". The court underlined that the issue transcends individual cases and exposes a systemic failure in prison administration across the country. "The present proceedings compel this Court to examine whether the existing legal frameworks, remission policies and executive advisories governing incarceration are being meaningfully implemented in practice, and whether there exists a need for a principled and uniform mechanism to ensure that advanced age and terminal illness are recognised not as exceptional contingencies, but as constitutionally relevant considerations in the administration of criminal justice," it said. Invoking its powers under Articles 32 and 142 of the Constitution, the court directed every state and UT to frame the policy in consultation with the respective State Legal Services Authorities (SLSAs). The policy must, the court said, contain a clear and uniform definition of "terminal illness", suggesting that states may adopt the definition contained in the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Handbook on Prisoners with Special Needs, which describes it as a condition where there is "no reasonable medical possibility" that the patient's health will not continue to deteriorate and result in death. The judgment also mandates the constitution of independent medical boards at divisional and state levels to objectively assess and certify terminal illness or severe medical vulnerability. These boards will periodically review identified cases. Stressing that delays defeat the very purpose of compassionate release, the bench ordered states to prescribe a transparent and time-bound procedure for processing applications. "Procedural delays which result in prisoners spending their final months or years under incarceration shall be avoided," directed the court. It also integrated the process with the functioning of Under Trial Review Committees (UTRCs), directing them to periodically review cases involving terminally ill or physically incapacitated prisoners and recommend appropriate legal action....