“Violations of the law and the rights of citizens to protect their health and provide adequate medical care in the penitentiary system are systematically detected,” the ministry’s press service said in a statement.

It is clarified that most violations are related to the procedures for the provision of medical care and its standards.

It is noted that in most regions, control by local departments of the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) "does not fully meet the requirements of the law."

According to the agency, over half a year more than 1,500 violations were revealed in the country, 283 officials of the penal system were brought to disciplinary action.

Earlier it became known that the number of convicts in Russia held in penal colonies during the year decreased by 6% to 434 thousand people.

Anton Tsvetkov, chairman of the expert council on security and relations between citizens and law enforcement agencies, commented on a decrease in the number of prisoners in an interview with the FAN.

According to him, this was facilitated by the “high-quality and effective work of the prosecution authorities”, the tougher attitude of prosecutors to the election of such a preventive measure as arrest.