Bengal police have started setting up safe homes in south districts exclusively for its members who test positive for Covid-19 but show mild or no symptoms as over 500 novel coronavirus cases were detected in the force.

Sources said the law enforcers were looking for right buildings to convert them into safe homes following a recent directive from the state police directorate to take care of its members during the pandemic.

“Police personnel are playing one of the most vital roles in keeping people safe from the coronavirus by implementing the lockdown or maintaining law and order problems during the current crisis,” said a senior IPS officer.

“Most police personnel are posted far away from their home districts and often reside in barracks or quarters. So, if they are found to have Covid, it is impossible to keep them in home quarantine. On the other hand, if police occupy government safe homes, other patients would suffer,” the officer added.

According to government protocol, asymptomatic and semi-symptomatic civilian patients are to be admitted to the state-run safe homes for 14 days with monitoring by local health officials. If they develop serious symptoms later, they are transferred to government hospitals.

The sources said more than 500 police personnel had already contracted the novel coronavirus in the state.

In districts like Birbhum and Hooghly, the police have already established safe homes for each station. “We have set up safe homes for each station so that there will be no need for asymptomatic police personnel to travel a long distance. It would help to control the spread of the infection,” said Birbhum police chief Shyam Singh.

In Birbhum, 24 buildings, including guest houses and a motel, have already been earmarked to be converted into safe homes. Fifteen police personnel have already been infected by Covid in the district.

In Hooghly, there are 16 police stations in rural police districts and seven in the Chandernagore police commissionerate. Sources said at least one safe home each for all police stations had been launched in the district.

“In Chandernagore, we have already selected 16 safe homes. Most of them are either guest houses or empty buildings or flats,” said Chandernagore police commissioner Humayun Kabir.

Source said nearly 130 police personnel had tested positive for Covid so far in the Hooghly district and around half of them were yet to recover.

In East Burdwan, the police have set up two safe homes in Burdwan town that can house more than 200 patients. “We did not set up safe homes at every police station here because there is a spurt in cases only in a few areas. Setting up safe homes is expensive as we need to maintain infrastructure. Only 8 percent of beds are accommodated at our safe homes in Burdwan town,” said a district police officer.

“If needed, we can increase the number of safe homes anytime,” said East Burdwan police chief Bhaskar Mukherjee.

Around 45 police personnel, including senior officers, were infected in the East Burdwan district but most have recovered and the rest are asymptomatic and in home quarantine.