A month after training for 393 Railway Protection Force woman constable recruits was suspended in view of the pandemic situation, the programme resumed again at RPF Zonal Training Centre in Tiruchi on Tuesday.
The eight-month-long programme for the recruits selected from various parts of the country that began in November last at the centre was suspended in late March when the lockdown was clamped.
The constable recruits, who went back to their native States, returned to the training centre in the last week of June. The programme comprising indoor and outdoor sessions resumed in mid-July after obtaining permission from the Collector. It was ssuspended again on July 19 on the directive of the Southern Railway General Manager after some RPF instructors tested positive. An RPF constable attached to the training centre died due to COVID-19.
Some of the recruits, who displayed symptoms, were subjected to tests at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital in Tiruchi. Those who tested positive underwent treatment, a senior RPF officer said.
Follwing the recovery of instructors and recruits and end of quarantine period, training resumed on Tuesday after permission was accorded by the Southern Railway General Manager. “Everything is normal now,” the officer said.
All standard protocols such as wearing of masks, use of hand sanitisers and personal distancing were being followed at the training centre. Enough space had been provided between the cots at their place of stay on the premises. After completing a three-month basic training schedule at the centre, they would be sent to various RPF posts for practical training, the officer added.