Agra, May 10 (IANS): Agra Central jail's inmate 60-year-old Virendra's death due to Covid-19 on Saturday, has alarmed other inmates and the jail administration, which has taken a series of steps to halt the spread of the infection.

Jail authorities have quarantined 14 other inmates of his ward and 16 wardens. DIG Lav Kumar has twice visited the jail to review the conditions and the facilities available in the jail premises.

Other prisoners are said to be panic-stricken and have demanded testing. Against a capacity of around 1500, the jail is overcrowded with 1943 inmates.

The deceased Virendra, serving life sentence, had been shifted to Agra from Jhansi in December 2019. He was admitted to the SN Medical College on May 3, after a brain stroke due to high blood pressure. His report on May 6, confirmed he was Covid-19 positive.

Questions doing round here raise an accusing finger at the jail management. When meetings "mulaakaat" had been discontinued with the prisoners, of relatives and outsiders, how did Virendra get infected. Possibly he caught the infection in the hospital, but that is discounted as his stay was very short.