It is worrying to note that as of Saturday, at least 2382 members of Bangladesh Police have been infected with coronavirus across the country, according to the police's corona control room.
Police, all across Bangladesh, have been working tirelessly to maintain law and order, and implement government directives and initiatives to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
Indeed, after health officials, they are the first ones to respond to any situation related to COVID-19 while facilitating the imposed lockdown, quarantine and isolation orders across the country.
Also they have been assisting government and non-government bodies to operate smoothly amid the outbreak. But safety measures taken for police are still not up to mark and which is why the number of infected police personnel is increasing at a startling rate in Bangladesh.
Adequate and effective personal protection equipment
should be provided to the policemen, particularly to
those who are on the streets
Lack of sufficient quantity of personal protective equipment (PPE) is imperilling the ability of police force to fight the coronavirus and thus putting their own lives at risk.
There is no denial that the matter of PPE for police has not been adequately addressed. The nature of their job and the cramped living conditions in police lines have increased the chance of spread of the virus among police members.
Considering all above, adequate and effective personal protection equipment should be provided to the policemen, particularly to those who are on the streets.
Testing for the virus should be carried out on the members of the law enforcing agencies, so that the positive cases can be segregated. Also their living conditions must be made more hygienic. Last but not the least, the efforts and resources of the police hospitals in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country must be supplemented so that fatalities can be kept to a minimum.