Prison room, bed, newspaper — That is ‘baron’ Veeramani’s world now

CHENNAI: The world of a granite baron, who had his corporate footprint in about 22 countries, has now shrunk to a 10X15 feet prison room, a bed, a chair, an English business newspaper and brief walks along a CCTV-monitored corridor at Puzhal prison in Chennai. First arrested on Aug 29 in connection with a child rape case, Gem Granites chairman R Veeramani, 84, is now a Goondas Act detenue facing four child rape cases so far.Veeramani is today Puzhal Central Prison’s VIP inmate housed at the High Security (HS) block, where he is under round-the-clock surveillance. CCTV cameras cover the corridors, entrances and exterior of the block. He has prison intelligence personnel-monitored access to the corridor and interaction with prison staff and inmates.A prison guard stationed before a bank of monitors watches the screens showing different sections of the HS block.