A 55-year-old Central Reserve Police Force sub-inspector died of Covid-19 in Delhi on Tuesday, PTI reported. This is the first Covid-19 death in the Central Armed Police Forces.
The sub-inspector had been admitted to Delhi’s Safdarjung hospital for treatment. He belonged to Assam and was posted with the 31st battalion of the CRPF in Delhi.
“The 55-year-old personnel died on Tuesday due to Covid-19 infection,” the news agency quoted an unidentified official as saying. The official added that the patient had also been suffering from diabetes and hypertension.
On Sunday, 15 CRPF soldiers from the battalion had tested positive for Covid-19, PTI had reported. The soldiers were tested after a head constable, who visited the battalion earlier this month, was found to have contracted the infection on April 21.
The head constable, who was working as a nursing assistant, is a part of the 162nd battalion deployed in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara district. He was on leave in Noida.
Earlier this month, a doctor of the paramilitary force had contracted the infection. CRPF Director General AP Maheshwari had quarantined himself after the development.
CRPF soldiers are actively involved in Covid-19 relief efforts across India, distributing protective masks and essentials to the people.
The number of coronavirus cases in India has risen to 29,974, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Covid-19 has killed 937 people in the country. Delhi has reported 3,108 cases and 54 deaths.
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