At Ramganj, with half of Jaipur’s 900 cases. (Photo: Rohit Jain Paras)
A 200-ml bottle of sanitiser and a one-litre bottle of Bisleri water are among the first things he packs. The latter, he says, is for the entire night. These, and a pair of gloves, a mask, a cap, and the thought that “duty toh karni hai, dar kar kya hoga (we have to do our duty, what purpose will fear serve)”, says the 42-year-old head constable, have helped him report to work for the past month in Jaipur’s Ramganj — one of the COVID-19 hotspots in the tourist city which accounts for over 50 per cent of its nearly 900 cases.
“My duty is in ‘core’ Ramganj, I feel scared to even keep my water bottle on the ground, take small sips through my shift.
Since all shops are shut, I can’t buy another bottle. I don’t accept water from residents either, it may have the virus,” says the head constable who has been with Rajasthan Police for 26 years. “Drinking too much water would also mean too many breaks to relieve myself, and leaving my picket unmanned. I can’t afford that.”
Jaipur is among the 13 urban centres that account for well over half the number of COVID-19 cases in the country. For the past four weeks, the head constable has been stationed at a picket in Ramganj, along with a home guard, in Jaipur’s Walled City where an indefinite curfew has been in place since late March. Nearly 1,000 police personnel have been deployed in the neighbourhood.
“I have been on night shift, from 10 pm to 6 am, for the past 10 days. We are supposed to get a day off after seven days/nights of work, but
I have got only a day’s leave in 30 days. Maybe I will get one this week,” he says. The policemen work in two other shifts – 6 am to 2 pm, and 2 pm to 10 pm.
He moved into a guest house with another constable after a policeman at the Ramganj station contracted the virus a few weeks ago. “Hadkamp mach gaya (There was chaos). Earlier, I stayed in the barracks at Police Lines. All of us ate from each other’s plates, shared water bottles, sat on the same chair and beds… Now, I don’t feel safe there at all. We now pay Rs 200 for a room from our own pockets,” he says. A resident of Haryana, the 42-year-old has a daughter who is pursuing a BTech in his hometown.
As his concerns about his own safety grew, he also asked the SHO of his police station to hand him a dose of hydroxychloroquine – a preventive measure against coronavirus recommended by the Rajasthan government for its police personnel. “But he said the stock was over. I had a big fight with him, and the matter reached the DCP. It was resolved, but I didn’t get any HCQ,” he complains.
Jaipur Police Commissioner Anand Srivastava says, “Across Jaipur, at least 9,000 policemen are on corona duty. Of these, 300 were given HCQ
doses based on proximity to infected people, which included policemen accompanying medical teams. Teams stationed at isolation wards have also been given complete PPE kits. Vehicles and police stations are sanitised every few days. We have sufficient stock of masks, gloves and PPE kits for the next 15-20 days.”
Seven positive coronavirus cases have been reported among police personnel in Jaipur, and 50 staff members who met them have been quarantined in the past month.
IGP (Jaipur Range) S Sengathir says the department has received masks and sanitisers from both government and private players, putting an end to the initial shortage.
“Some women police officers have started sewing the masks too. We have also purchased them from CRPF stores in Delhi. Policemen collect them from their respective police stations before going to work. There is also an SBI-linked insurance cover of Rs 50 lakh for all police personnel,” he says.
Despite the department’s efforts, says the 42-year-old, policemen on the ground fend for themselves. “I have home-cooked meals and lots of vegetables to keep my immunity strong. I had chapattis and ghiya (bottle gourd) today. We have to stay hungry on shifts since no restaurant is open, and carrying food to work is too risky. The virus might sit on it. I can often hear my stomach growling.”
“I have three sets of uniform. Every alternate day, I wash two sets after my shift. I also wash my mask and gloves and reuse them for as long as I can. I constantly fear I will run out of masks. Apart from the few that I have got from work, I have also taken some from friends and NGOs. If I don’t have five masks in reserve, I feel anxious,” he says.
Towards the end of March, when he was told about his deployment in Ramganj, he says “I was a little nervous”.
“I have served in the relief team during the Bhuj (Gujarat) earthquake. I have been on both election and curfew duty before. But this time the task was very different. It was not just about helping or saving others, I had to save myself too. My picket is in the interiors of Ramganj, and in the early days it was very hard to convince people to stay indoors,” he says.
Situated in the heart of Jaipur, its narrow lanes hemmed in by homes and shops standing cheek-by-jowl, Ramganj is among the most densely populated areas of the city – making the task of health workers and security personnel even more difficult.
The 42-year-old’s shift begins by first reporting at the Ramganj Police Station and recording his attendance. “We are marked absent even for a 15-minute delay,” he claims. He then puts on his gear, cleans a chair with his small bottle of sanitiser and takes it to his “point”.
“Since it has been nearly a month, a lot of people are frustrated staying indoors. They keep roaming outside. The moment I get there, I shout at them, bang my lathi on the ground or on the walls, and finally I threaten them. It usually works,” he says.
His roommate, a 47-year-old posted at another picket in Ramganj, chimes in, “I just fold my hands and request them to retreat into their homes.”
Night duty, says the 42-year-old, is particularly tough, and scrolling through ‘news’ on Facebook and WhatsApp only help for a few hours.
“There is no tea shop open. It’s a struggle to stay awake without chai. I will not lie, kabhi chair pe susta leta hoon (I take a short nap sometimes). My phone is my only companion. I call my wife, but not for long. She is always worried, and checks everyday if I have eaten and washed my clothes. I also listen to Haryanvi songs and watch Haryanvi films on YouTube. It keeps me awake,” he says. For tonight’s shift, he has downloaded the 1984 Haryanvi hit film Chandrawal.