This Article is From May 23, 2020

National Disaster Response Force Reports Its First Coronavirus Case

The National Disaster Response Force official has been admitted to an isolation ward in a Greater Noida hospital on Thursday.

National Disaster Response Force Reports Its First Coronavirus Case

The officer had gone to a doctor for treatment after which his virus test was done (Representational)

New Delhi:

An official of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has been found positive for coronavirus, the first case such being detected in the federal contingency force, officials said today.

They said the sub-Inspector rank official was on leave and had gone to a doctor for some dental treatment, following which his COVID-19 test was done.

The NDRF official has been admitted to an isolation ward in a Greater Noida hospital on Thursday.

The official is posted in the headquarters of the force here and was on deputation from the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), they said.

The NDRF, raised in 2006, is a 12-battalion strong force of the central government for disaster response and its over 40 teams are currently deployed in Odisha and West Bengal for relief and rescue works in the wake of cyclone "Amphan".

The Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), which comprises Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and SSB, reported 43 fresh cases since Thursday.

The BSF reported 24 fresh cases today, out of which seven personnel are posted at the headquarters of the about 2.5-personnel strong paramilitary in Delhi.

"All the fresh cases have been reported from Delhi and they work in various establishments of the force."

"These personnel were the primary or secondary contacts of earlier detected positive staffers and were not working in the office and were already in quarantine," a BSF spokesperson said.

As and when test results are coming, they are either being detected positive or negative for COVID-19, he said. The Pakistan and Bangladesh borders guarding force has a total 108 active cases, while 277 of its troops have recovered.

The airports guarding force CISF also reported 13 fresh cases with four reported from its unit deployed to guard the Bokaro steel plant in Jharkhand.

The about 1.62-lakh personnel strength force has a total of 100 active coronavirus cases while 71 have recovered from the disease.

The CRPF, country's largest with 3.25 lakh personnel, reported five fresh cases and its overall active cases tally is 125 personnel. A total of 213 CRPF personnel have recovered till now.

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police, tasked to guard the 3,488 km Line of Actual  Control with China, had one fresh case, taking its total active cases tally to 105. A total of 82 of its personnel have recovered till now.

The SSB, guarding the open Indian fronts with Nepal and Bhutan, has 30 active cases. A personnel of the elite counter-terrorist force, National Security Guard (NSG), has also been infected with the disease early this month.

The five CAPFs, NSG and the NDRF work under the command of the union home ministry.

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