Delhi Prison dept takes steps to prevent spread of coronavirus in jails

The Delhi Prison department has taken several steps to prevent the spread of coronavirus in jails, officials said on Saturday.

The department has started manufacturing masks to provide those to the inmates and healthcare workers, they added.

The manufacturing of an additional quantity of phenyl and handwash to ensure hygiene and sanitation had also started, a senior jail official said.

Isolation wards have also been created in prisons.

"We have created isolation wards in every jail for the inmates showing flu-like symptoms. Thermal scanners are being used for the screening of all persons and inmates entering the jail. Personal protective equipment (PPE) kits have been distributed among the healthcare workers," the spokesperson of the department, Additional Inspector General (AIG) Raj Kumar, said.

The number of positive coronavirus cases has risen to 84 in the country, including two deaths reported from Delhi and Karnataka.

The national capital has reported seven positive cases.

"New inmates are being kept in separate barracks for at least three days. Sensitisation of general staff and inmates about general hygiene and precautions regarding coronavirus is being carried out.

"Family visits, which are currently allowed twice a week, have been reduced to once a week till March 31. Currently, three family members are allowed to meet an inmate, which has also been reduced to two," the AIG said.