States with overcrowded prisons can contact Telangana that plans to rent out its jail cells at Rs 10,000 a month for each prisoner next year.

The jail-share scheme is restricted to convicts of “non-grievous and non-serious” offences. Tenants cannot be undertrials and hardcore criminals.

“Norway, where the crime rate has gone down considerably, started this practice of letting its prisons to neighbouring countries facing space shortage for prisoners. We want to adopt this,” director general of prisons VK Singh said on Thursday.

Telangana’s 50 jails can accommodate 6,848 prisoners. At present, there are 6,063 on the prison rolls. So, there’s lodging space for around 800 more. Jails in bigger states are struggling with chronic overcrowding — the result of a slow-moving justice system and years of failure to build new prisons by governments trying to rein in expenses.

The prisons department estimates earnings of roughly Rs 25 crore a year from the rental if the government clears the plan.