Corona Cripples Cops: States Scramble For Plan B

After hundreds found positive & quarantined, govts roping in home guards, civil defence personnel, NCC cadets and scouts & guides, but will it be enough?

- Vaktania in Mumbai, Hemender Sharma, Gopi Maniar and Kamaljit Kaur

On May 3, Union Home Ministry advised states to prepare a second line of defence of police forces to make up for the personnel who may be rendered ineffective due to Covid-19 infection. The ministry suggested roping in home guards, civil defence personnel, NCC cadets and scouts and guides in areas with no imminent law and order problem.

The order assumes significance as hundreds of cops and paramilitary personnel are falling prey to the coronavirus pandemic across the country. But do the states possess a second line of defence? Mail Today did a reality check in states such as Delhi, Maharashtra and Gujarat, which among the worst affected states in the country in terms of number of infections.

SITUATION IN CAPITAL

In Delhi, for example, over 170 policemen have been infected so far. But the Delhi Police claimed that they are performing better as compared to the statistics of other states’ police. “Keeping in mind that the police personnel are the front warriors and are at high risk of getting infected, we have prepared in-built mechanism to deal with the situation for future during difficult times,” said MS Randhawa, Delhi Police Spokesperson. Over 11,000 people have been infected in Delhi including 176 deaths so far.