A person accused of child sexual abuse escaped recently from the first-line treatment centre (FLTC) being run at the convention centre of the Kochi airport, throwing light on the challenge being faced by the police in guarding those who have tested positive for SARS-COV-2.
The infected among those arrested by the police and excise are put up at the FLTC at Kochi airport along with other infected members of the public. Though police personnel are put on guard duty at the centre, the security remains far from foolproof.
“We have taken up the matter with the District Disaster Management Authority, that it is really tough to keep a tab on the accused who mix with the civilians. A possible solution is a separate FLTC exclusively for the arrested. With those arrested increasingly testing positive since September, the task is getting progressively difficult,” said K. Karthik, District Police Chief.
While the centre has multiple entries and exit points, police are deployed only at the main entrance, which is more than 100 metres away from the facility. “The accused are not always in the sight of the police guards who have to largely depend on information from health and paramedical staff at the centre. We have already petitioned the District Police Chief and now plan to raise it with the District Collector as well,” said M.V. Sanil, district secretary (Ernakulam Rural) of Kerala Police Association.
