On Monday, Mumbai Police has asked its personnel who are above 55 years of age to go on leave and stay at home after three policemen died of coronavirus in the city.
The order by Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh comes as a precautionary measure to protect them after deadly Covid-19 claimed lives of three police personnel on duty in the last three days.
As per information, during an analysis, it came to light that the three deceased and the other police personnel currently undergoing treatment for coronavirus were above the age of 50.
“In view of this, we have decided to protect our policemen and officers – who are above 55 years of age and having some pre-existing ailment – and asked them to take leave, because of their age, these police personnel are at a higher risk. Therefore, we are allowing them to take leave during these days” the official said.
The order also states that police personnel with age above 53 with existing condition of hypertension, diabetes and respiratory issues can also stay at home.
A 56-year-old head constable with the Mumbai Police had died on Monday. He was undergoing treatment for the novel coronavirus. Shivaji Sonawane was attached to the Kurla traffic division of the Mumbai Police. As per reports, Sonawane was deployed in the L-ward (Kurla division), which is one of Mumbai city’s major Covid-19 hotspots.
Head Constable Shivaji Sonawane was the third Mumbai Police personnel to have succumbed to Covid-19 after testing positive for the infection.
Constable Chandrakant Pendurkar attached to the Vakola police station died on Saturday. Head constable Sandip Surve, 52, succumbed to the infection on Sunday.Singh’s directive seeks to protect 45,000-strong Mumbai Police from the raging Covid-19 outbreak.
