Kolkata's legendary Eden Gardens cricket stadium is to be used as a quarantine centre for Indian police who have the coronavirus, AFP quoted officials as saying.

With the city's hospitals under growing pressure, hundreds of beds are to be set up in the 80,000 capacity stadium that was used for the 1987 World Cup final.

“It is our duty to help and support the administration in this hour of crisis. The quarantine facility will be used for police personnel who are Covid-19 warriors,” said Cricket Association of Bengal president Avishek Dalmiya.

The beds will be put in galleries around the seating and not on the pitch that was last used by India for a day-night Test against Bangladesh last November.

“Such areas would be thoroughly segregated as a safety measure,” added Dalmiya.