‘Prepare yourselves to deal with law & order situations arising out of case surge,’ says CP
Asks cops to treat everyone as COVID-19 positive to keep guard up
NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police Commissioner has asked its officers to be prepared for handling law and order situations that may arise as COVID-19 cases here continue to break records. The police chief is also learnt to have instructed officers in the force to develop a culture where they treat every person they meet as a potential COVID19 positive case so that taking appropriate precautions may become second nature for them. In an interaction with all SHOS, ACPS and senior officers, the police chief said, "We should be well prepared for the coming days in which there is the expectation of further upsurge in patients which may lead to a shortage of hospital facilities and resultant law and order issues. These are testing times for all of us and we should put in our best to come out successful." CP further directed that each police station should have an adequate number of protective gear. Staff deployed at containment zones, hospitals, quarantine centres and staff going for raids and conducting interrogation should be equipped with all necessary protective gear for their safety. He further said, "We should inculcate a culture wherein we treat everybody with whom we are meeting as if he is a Corona infected person and maintain social distancing." Sources said that earlier in a meeting, a Dcprank officer had informed senior officers that in police stations, there was a lack of social distancing among junior-level officers like investigating officers and duty officers. He suggested a micro-level assessment of how they can be provided sufficient space to work in the police stations so that a proper distance can be maintained.
The Commissioner had directed all supervisory officers to think out of the box and find ways to ensure social distancing at the police station level. Later, policing guidelines were also issued by the Delhi
Police in light of the Coronavirus crisis. According to these guidelines, the micro grouping of the staff of the police station should be done as per the nature of their duty. There should be least contact between different duty groups, the guidelines stipulate.
In another meeting, one Special CP rank officer told other officers that outside forces were not maintaining social distancing in their barracks. He also suggested that picket strength should be reduced to five policemen only. The CP had directed that outside forces should be briefed to maintain social distancing in their barracks and that police staff should be deployed as per their requirements.
As many as nine policemen who were affected by COVID19 have now died and more than 800 policemen have tested positive for the virus since the outbreak. According to police, more than 200 policemen have recovered and joined back.