Tehran:Some 21,000 inmates serving terms in Iran’s prisons have memorized the Quran, an official said.

Hojat-ol-Islam Reza Rostami, the director general of the Prisons Organization’s cultural and educational department, said these are inmates that have learned at least three Juzes (parts) of the Quran by heart.

He made the remarks in an interview with IQNA on the sidelines of a Quran competition for inmates in Khorramabad, the capital of the western province of Lorestan.

Referring to the organization’s Quranic and religious activities, Hojat-ol-Islam Rostami said there have been extensive programs held in prisons in the field of thematic memorization of Quran.

He added that last year, a Quranic festival was held by the organization in the southern city of Shiraz.

The cleric went on to say that the organization has set up 294 Dar-ol-Quran centers in the country’s prisons, noting that there is need for establishing more such centers in prisons and correctional facilities.