NEW DELHI: At least 45 Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel have tested positive for deadly coronavirus, the organisation said on Tuesday.
Out of them, 43 have been deployed for internal security duty in Delhi and two others deployed for law and order duty with Delhi Police, the ITBP said in a release.
The ITBP Referral Hospital in Greater Noida has received 58 jawans from various para-military forces who have tested COVID-19 positive, DG ITBP SS Deswal informed on Tuesday.
ITBP has also started treating ‘Himveers’ in the hospital in Noida. Referral Hospital in Greater Noida is a 200-bed hospital dedicated to COVID-19 treatment.
"Referral hospital in Greater Noida, dedicated to COVID-19 patients has received patients from all Central armed police forces. Currently, 58 jawans from ITBP, BSF and CISF are admitted at the hospital. Teams of specialist doctors are treating our jawans 24x7," DG ITBP SS Deswal said.
The ITBP DG also said that doctors are well equipped with PPEs and other necessary equipment required to treat COVID-19 patients.
"All other jawans coming into contact of affected personnel are being put into quarantine facilities," he said.
So far, CRPF has the maximum 150 coronavirus affected patients followed by BSF whose 67 personnel have been tested positive for the infection. CISF, ITBP, SSB have fewer numbers of jawans infected with the coronavirus.
On Tuesday, the number of COVID-19 cases shot up to 46,433 from the 42,836 the day before, a sharp rise of 3,597 cases, according to Union Health Ministry data. The death toll has risen to 1,568 from 1,389.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Tuesday said that India has so far been able to stave off community transmission of COVID-19, expressing the hope that “behavioural changes" brought about by the infection could become the new normal for a healthy society after the pandemic abates.
