The labour to which political prisoners were subjected to in the Cellular Jail was intended to function as a form of torture. The political prisoners were required to produce a daily quota of thirty pounds of coconut oil, ten pounds of mustard oil-- targets that were beyond the physical capacity of all .Dire punishment followed for those who failed to meet the quotas. Punishment was barbaric. Torture and flogging were frequently resorted to on the flogging stand .Sack cloth uniforms, unhygienic diet, bar fetters, crossbar fetters, neck ring shackles, leg irons and chains were other deterrents for those who refused to submit to the brutal Warders. The punishment varied from handcuffs for a week and fetters for six months to solitary confinement.

             In the crowded, filthy, damp environment of the Cellular Jail, facing the brutalities of the Jail officials, and the soul shattering labour , political prisoners continued their struggle for survival. The bleak desolation of prison life, the stifling atmosphere of cells, resounding with the clank of chains, curses and abusive epithets of the warders was enough to unnerve even the hardiest of them.