TB, HIV patients in Arthur Road prison are at a greater risk of contracting Covid, say experts

With several inmates at Arthur Road Jail infected with tuberculosis (TB) and HIV, health experts are worried that the number of Covid-positive people at the premises

With several inmates at Arthur Road Jail infected with tuberculosis (TB) and HIV, health experts are worried that the number of Covid-positive people at the premises can increase. The jail has currently 103 Covid-19 cases.

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Deepak Pandey, inspector general of police (south region) of state prisons department, did not respond to repeated calls and messages.

Arthur Road prison has a capacity of 800 but houses 2,600 inmates currently. The situation is the same at the city’s other major jail at Byculla, where over 500 prisoners are squeezed into a space meant for 200 people.

As per data procured from the Mumbai District Aids Control Society (MDACS), there are 22 inmates with HIV at Arthur Road Jail while 29 HIV patients are at Byculla Jail, including 14 from the women’s jail. There are 18 TB patients at Arthur Road Jail as per the state tuberculosis department.

Due to overcrowding in the jails with common bathrooms and mess rooms, it is difficult to stop the spread of the infection, say health experts. Prisoners living with HIV and TB have higher chances of contracting the infection due to low immunity.

“There is a need to make special arrangements for such vulnerable prisoners. Jail authorities should have followed the international guidelines to stop the spread,” said Blessi Kumar, of the Delhi-based Global Coalition of TB Activists (GCTA).

During the outbreak of the virus in China, prisons had turned into a breeding ground for the disease. As of February 25, there were 555 confirmed infections in five prisons of three provinces — Hubei, Shandong, and Zhejiang.

Taking note of it, the World Health Organization released prison guidelines—Preparedness, prevention and control of Covid-19 in prisons. It recommended screening of all inmates and special provision for patients with blood-borne viruses, TB and drug use disorders. “Particular attention should be paid to persons with contagious diseases...refined allocation procedures should be considered that would allow prisoners at highest risk to be separated from others,” read the guidelines.

But when HT contacted recently released prisoners from both the jails, they claimed that there is no provision of hygiene, social distancing and lack of sensitisation at the prisons.

A 42-year-old HIV-positive inmate, who recently got discharged from Byculla Jail, said, “For over 500 prisoners, there were only 4 common bathrooms. We bathed together and slept with over 30 prisoners in a cell.” He was at the jail for three months.

Avinash Roy, a state lawyer, spoke about one of his clients who is infected with TB and is an inmate at Arthur Road Jail. Despite getting approval for his bail, due to the lockdown, the inmate’s family couldn’t complete his security procedure to bring him out of the jail. “When my client’s family tried talking to the jail authority, they said that his being inside the jail is safer. Who will take responsibility if anything happens to him?” he said.

Dr Pranita Tipre, head of TB department, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said, “The jails have isolation facilities where they will keep the suspected patients. But so far, we haven’t received any instructions from the jails for testing all the TB patients.”

Health activists have criticised jail authorities for not taking provisional measures.

Eldred Tellis, executive director, Sankalp Rehabilitation Trust said, “These prisoners should be given preventive medicines like HCQ or Ayurveda. They keep using the same mask for days without sanitising it. Plus, they aren’t even given gloves. The food given in jails is of poor quality which doesn’t even boost immunity.”

As per experts, as these inmates have already compromised health, conditions, if they contract the infection, the mortality rate can become higher. “Their early diagnosis is necessary for timely treatment, increasing their chances of recovery,” said Ganesh Acharya, a TB/HIV activist.

During the initial days of the nation-wide lockdown, there was a gap of 7 to 8 days in the procurement of HIV drugs in jails. Taking note of this, MDACS provided medicines for a month in advance to the prisons.

“It is important to keep the viral load (presence of HIV in blood) in the body under control. With regular intake of medicines, the patients are at a lesser risk of contracting the infection,” said Dr Srikala Acharya, additional project director of MDACS.