On the first day of week-long lockdown, the Delhi Police Commissioner S N Shrivastava held a briefing via video conference with senior police officers of districts to review the situation on ground.
“We urge people to follow Covid appropriate behaviour and stay home during this lockdown,” he said.
Emphasizing that essential services and goods need to be facilitated, Shrivastava directed that unnecessary movement of vehicles and people on roads be curbed, police said.
He asked the field officers to also make use of announcements in colonies and densely populated areas for people to obey the COVID curfew, besides strictly checking at the pickets on roads, officials said.
Anyone coming out of home will be definitely checked by the police personnel and questioned. Essential services like medicine shops, vegetable shops etc. the social distancing be ensured, they said.
“The priority task is to implement this week-long lockdown and tightness in restrictions be kept,” he said, adding that if anyone is found in disobedience to the restrictions without a genuine ground or exemption, needs to be prosecuted at once.
The Commissioner also expressed concern over the health and safety of police personnel who are serving 24x7 on the ground and exposing themselves to risks of infection.
“Being frontline warriors, our personnel need to perform their duties, but also ensure COVID safety by following strict covid discipline,” Shrivastava said.
Delhi Police Public Relation Officer (PRO), Chinmoy Biswal said that the CP also directed the deployment of police officials at pickets and areas to be in small groups and with social distancing, even while checking people or vehicles so that their exposure risk is minimum.
Shrivastava also directed the district and unit officers to keep sufficient stock of covid equipment like PPE kits, masks, sanitisers etc and pay attention to repeated cleanliness of toilets and common areas of the barracks and police stations, Biswal said.
Daily health monitoring of the staff should go carried out. The police colonies should also be sanitised because policemen return to homes from duties. Officers should remain in communication with staff who have fallen sick and make best possible arrangements for their treatment, the CP said.
The Covid Helpline 011-24369900 is already getting nearly thousand calls a day for facilitation and help and maximum possible assistance is being extended, officials said.