The city police, at the frontlines in the battle against COVID-19 and most susceptible like other corona warriors, have been hit by a spike in cases with 68 personnel reporting positive on Monday. The bulk of the cases (48) came from City Armed Reserve (CAR).
But what is bringing relief is that the recovery rate of the city police is high at 64.6% as on Monday evening. Of the 1,233 COVID-19 cases reported till date, 797 were discharged while 427 are under treatment. Nine personnel have died.
“The number of cases reported every day from the city police had come down to single digits in the last couple of weeks. We seemed to have turned the tide. But the spike in cases at CAR is worrying, and will be suitably tackled,” said Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao.
There had been a similar outbreak in the Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP), which was successfully handled. “In reserve police forces, most of the men stay in barracks, which leads to fast spread of the virus,” a senior official said.
But for the spike in CAR, the city police seem to have battled COVID-19 with moderate success in recent weeks. “Our personnel are at the frontlines more than anyone. While medical professionals have personal protective equipment, the police are fighting only with masks. But the success of the last few weeks seems to suggest ways of controlling the spread of the virus,” a senior police official said.
Mr. Rao attributes the success to stringent precautionary measures taken by every person in the force and the new Standard Operating Procedure (SOPs) introduced in policing.
“While wearing masks, head shields and gloves have become the norm in the force, other measures like drinking boiled water and, in some police stations, immunity boosting kashaya every few hours have also helped,” he said.
Moreover, the indiscriminate entry of public into police stations has been checked and help desks have been put up at the entrance of most police stations. People being let in only when absolutely necessary, after thermal screening and other precautionary measures.
Another senior official said the recovery rate had gone up and fatality rate had dropped even as random testing was ramped up. The key was early detection and initiation of treatment protocol for the personnel.
“Being at the frontlines, police are a vulnerable group. We have ramped up random RT-PCR tests, which have helped detect cases early and isolate them, preventing further spread within the force. This has also led to early treatment protocols, which have reduced the fatality rate and helped us achieve a high recovery rate,” the official said.
4,000 volunteers
Nearly 4,000 persons had volunteered as ‘civil police wardens’ during the recent one-week lockdown after Commissioner Bhaskar Rao sought help from citizens.
“While over 13,000 people had applied online, nearly 4,000 of them turned up for work during the lockdown. The programme has been a success,” Mr. Rao said, adding they had now decided to continue to use their services till the city tides over the pandemic.
“These volunteers are posted only for soft duties, like manning help desks at police stations, and, in some cases, at barricades and to maintain social distancing. As the police will continue to be short of personnel, the wardens will continue to help us,” he said.
The volunteer force was a “good bridge” between the police and the citizens. They are acting as effective communicators and force multipliers on the ground.
These civil police wardens are given a cap and a jacket. They work with the local police. The volunteers are requested to work for 10 hours a week. “With offices reopening, many of our volunteers have gone back to their workplaces. However, it is not tough to squeeze in a few hours during the week. Many are doing so while juggling their day jobs. It is to be seen how it pans out in the coming weeks,” a senior police official said.
