About 1,200 personnel from various departments such as teaching, forests and excise have been asked to report for duty by the Collector.
They will be assisting the police department during the lockdown.
Ever since a nationwide lockdown was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24, the police department has been facing a herculean task in covering a number of areas.
The police have their hands full, as their duties include enforcing the lockdown, identifying foreign returnees, providing security at the quarantine and isolation wards, and providing surveillance in the areas where suspected cases and foreign returnees are on home quarantine. Another challenge is to identify those who have returned from the religious congregation organised by Tablighi Jamaat at Markaz in Nizamuddin, Delhi.
The entire 3,000 personnel of the Visakhapatnam City Police have been working under stressful conditions and there is an urgent need for more manpower as even they need some rest, said Commissioner of Police R.K. Meena.
The Commissioner had requested Collector V. Vinay Chand to allot staff from departments that have been rested due to the lockdown. The Collector cleared the proposal.
Now, around 1,200 personnel from various departments will assist the police and each police team on duty will be a mix of regular policemen and personnel from other departments.
They will be mostly used in identifying the suspected cases and also for routine enforcement, Mr. Meena said.
A similar request was also sent to the Eastern Naval Command, and the Navy has drafted about 50 of its personnel to assist the police in enforcement duty.
“The Navy has always worked in close coordination with the civil administration and the need of the hour is to reduce the load on the police force, which is doing a commendable job against the threat of COVID-19,” a senior naval officer said.
