Under the scorching afternoon sun, five Delhi Police officers stand guard outside a quarantine centre in Sultanpuri that is currently home to dozens of people brought in from the Nizamuddin centre.

“Duty comes first irrespective of the deployment,” said the officers who have been tasked to maintain law and order.

Wearing masks, gloves, as well as head and shoe cover, the constable and head constable-rank officers shared what it is like to be deployed outside a centre with high health risk and how their families are coping with the deployment.

Taking precautions

At the gate, a constable maintains record of all people entering and exiting the centre, including medical staff. “I try to touch the pen or the register as little as possible,” he said.

There is also a fever gun and a bottle of sanitiser next to the register on the table. A tent has been set up near the gate where the officers are able to keep their belongings along with a few extra shoes and head covers. There is also a charpoy where the men can take a break.

“It is a 12-hour-long shift. We come at 8 a.m. and leave at 8 p.m. Thereafter, we get 24 hours of rest. This will continue for a week and then our deployment will change to another location,” said a head constable-rank official.

Unable to go home

However, they will not be able to go back home.

The officers on duty outside the quarantine centre have been provided rooms in hotels or guest houses.

As soon as they reach their rooms, one for each official, most of them call their families immediately after bathing and changing.

“The first thing my wife asks me is whether I had to touch any person. I calm her down and tell her everything is fine and that we take necessary precautions,” said an officer.

A constable-rank woman official posted at the gate said she has two daughters aged 16 and 18 who understand that she has to go for duty and there is no looking back. “Kaam hai to kaam hai, darr nahin saktey isme (If there’s work, there’s work. We can’t feel scared),” she added.

A young constable, who is from Aligarh, said that his mother is scared for his well-being. “If we deny our duty then who will work? We joined the force to serve the nation. It needs us now. We will not back down,” he said.

While admitting that there is nothing above duty, the officers shared a few grievances, including not being provided sanitisers at every checking point. They are available only at the main gate. “The quality of masks is also not very good. It keeps getting torn. We are also given limited gloves and masks because of which we have to keep sanitising the gloves,” said a head constable.