Cops grapple with Covid-19

The numbers of Covid-19 infection in Bangladesh Police, Bangladesh Ansar and Village Defence Party are rising sharply on a daily basis.

In the 24 hours till 2:30pm yesterday, a member of police died in Dhaka and 64 more were found infected with coronavirus across the country. Ten Ansar members have also tested positive for the virus in that period, according to officials of the forces.

Till yesterday, the total number of infections in the police force rose to 2,621 and 222 in Ansar.

The police official who died yesterday was Mujibur Rahman Talukder, 56. He joined the force on January 1, 1983 and was working as a sub-inspector of Special Branch (City) of police, according to Police Headquarters.

Mujibur was admitted to Impulse Hospital on May 11 after he tested Covid-19 positive. As his condition deteriorated, he was shifted to the Intensive Care Unit of Central Police Hospital, where he breathed his last at 8:51am, said Sohel Rana, assistant inspector general of PHQ.

Hailing from Sirajganj, he left behind his wife, two sons and a daughter. The body was sent to Bogura, where his family lives. Mujibur's death brings the number of police personnel to have died with Covid-19 while discharging their duties to nine.

Of the dead, eight were discharging duty in Dhaka Metropolitan Police areas. The infected rate also remains higher in DMP areas with around 1,097 till yesterday, according to officials.

As the Central Police Hospital is struggling to deal with the huge number of patients, police authorities have booked Impulse Hospital to treat its members.

Of the infected, 56 are from the diplomatic security division of DMP and most have started recovering and getting ready to resume duty, Rajon Kumar Saha, assistant commissioner of the division, told The Daily Star yesterday.

The division's high officials have been trying to boost police personnel's immunity by providing protein-rich diets regularly in the barracks, mess and hospitals, said MD Ashraful Islam, deputy commissioner of the division.

Around 32 officials of Gulshan Division of DMP tested Covid-19 positive.

"A number of police officials were infected while working in the field. We are communicating with the infected officials regularly and providing them with fruits full of vitamin and minerals so that they do not lose mental strength in this time of crisis," said Sudip Chakrabarty, deputy commissioner of Gulshan Division of DMP.

On May 9, different police units formed "special teams" to visit and inquire about the health of Covid-19 positive colleagues while maintaining social distancing.

Meanwhile, of the infected Ansar members, 193 contracted the virus while discharging duty in Dhaka and 29 in other districts.

Of them, 77 had been on duty at the parliament and 90 in the DMP areas, Mehnaz Tabassum Rabin, deputy director of the force, told The Daily Star yesterday.

So far, one Ansar member, Abdul Mazid, who was carrying out his duties at Bhatara Police Station under DMP, died from Covid-19 infection on May 11.

Besides, 457 Ansar members remain in quarantine as they either came into contact with infected members or exhibited Covid-19-like symptoms, she said.

The first Ansar member tested positive for Covid-19 on April 10.

Mehnaz said they have already taken measures including providing protective equipment to their members and also taking care of the infected members in hospitals so that they can recover and remain mentally strong.

The outbreak has also impacted the department of prisons, with around 24 prison guards and two inmates testing Covid-19 positive till yesterday, according to department sources.

Besides, around 309 more people remain in quarantine, including 242 inmates across the country who have exhibited Covid-19-like symptoms, Md Monzur Hossain, assistant inspector general of department of prison headquarters, told The Daily Star yesterday.

The prisons department earlier arranged isolation units for inmates inside jails in Kishoreganj, Madaripur, Pirojpur, Sylhet, Feni and Dinajpur districts, according to a home ministry report.

Prison officials said they remain on high alert and have taken all necessary steps, like keeping the compound clean, using disinfect spray regularly and keeping new inmates on 14-day quarantine before allowing them into the regular cells.