JOIN USBengaluru cop posted in containment zone tests positive for COVID-19
A 34-year-old police constable posted in a COVID-19 containment zone in the city has tested positive for the disease. Two constables who were his primary contacts have been quarantined. The constable is from the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and was deployed in Tipu Nagar, a COVID-19 containment zone adjacent to Padarayanapura, until May 17. He was assigned to the Chamarajpet police station due to a shortage of police personnel, a senior officer said.
The constable developed fever on May 19 and got himself tested for COVID-19 the day after. The test result turned in positive on Saturday and he has been admitted to Victoria Hospital. “What we know so far is that two more constables from the Chamarajpet police station who were also posted in Tipu Nagar were his primary contacts. They have been quarantined and we got them tested for COVID-19. The results are awaited,” the officer told DH.
The constable lives with his wife and a child in the Mahalakshmi Layout police quarters. Although his wife is pregnant again, he had sent her and the child to his native place in Nelamangala. “They are safe,” the officer said.
The constable is the second policeman to test positive for COVID-19 since Friday when a head constable from the Pulakeshi Nagar traffic police station had tested positive. Earlier, two suspected thieves arrested by the Hebbagodi police had tested positive, forcing all the policemen who came in contact with him to go into quarantine.
The police feel if more officers are infected, there will be nobody left to do the regular policing work.