Coronavirus Pandemic: Another Mumbai Police officer succumbs to COVID-19

Mumbai

Even during this pandemic, the frontline workers such as the police are constantly putting themselves at risk. While they are doing their duty, they are at risk of contracting the virus. So far, 1,007 police officers throughout Maharashtra have tested positive for coronavirus.

On Tuesday, a 55-year-old Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) posted at the Sewree Police Station passed away while undergoing treatment for coronavirus. With this, the tally of police personnel succumbing to the infection has gone up to five in Mumbai whereas eight for Maharashtra Police.

ASI Murlidhar Shankar Waghmare from Sewri Police Station, Mumbai lost his life to Coronavirus. May his soul rest in peace.

DGP and all ranks of Maharashtra Police offer their condolences to the Waghmare family.
— Maharashtra Police (@DGPMaharashtra) May 12, 2020

ASI Murlidhar Waghmare had shown symptoms of COVID-19 a few days back. After this, he was tested for coronavirus and his report came back positive. The ASI's fatality has once again raised questions about the safety of police officers.

The contagion has adversely affected police personnel in Maharashtra and especially, the police officials patrolling the streets of Mumbai are at a higher risk since the city is the hotspot of COVID-19 in the state with 14,924 cases being registered so far. 309 Mumbai Police officials have tested positive for COVID-19 so far.

One of the reasons behind this is the passive response of the citizens to follow the lockdown regulations. To keep them in check, the police officers have to patrol the streets, putting them at risk.

Of the 1,007 infected policemen in Maharashtra, 106 are police officers, whereas 901 are police constables. Other than that, several policemen are suspected of having contracted the virus and therefore, close to 3,000 policemen are under quarantine.

Meanwhile, in an attempt to assist the personnel working on the frontline, Additional Commissioner Manoj Sharma stated that the police has tied up with 22 hotels in the West region, from Jogeshwari to Bandra. This benefits them in many ways as they do not have to worry about chores like sanitizing the rooms and bathrooms. By asking policemen to stay in hotels, the force intends to keep them safe, also protecting their family members from catching the virus.

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