With just a week left before he resumes work, assistant police inspector (API) Farid Khan says his bag is packed and he is ready to go. It is the same bag of essentials that Khan had decided to take to JJ Marg Police Station on May 6, when the number of COVID-19 cases shot up across the city, indicating his job was only going to get tougher. "Many of our senior police officers have been working nonstop, without seeing family for weeks. Being a frontline worker comes with health risks, so I decided to pack my bag and stay at the police station till the situation normalises so that I don't mingle with my family," Khan, 39, remembers. But that same day, Khan experienced mild symptoms of the Coronavirus. "After a colleague tested positive, those who had come in immediate contact with him were asked to get tested.

On May 4, my results came negative. But the next day on, I started feeling extremely weak. First I thought it must be because I was observing Ramzan roza, but I had never experienced something like this before. I had a terrible cold, and my temperature shot up," says Khan, who has been posted at JJ Marg Police Station since 2017. On May 8, Khan's report came positive.