High Security For Last-Phase Elections In Odisha Tomorrow; 126 Companies Of CAPF Deployed

Bhubaneswar: Odisha police is alert, prepared and keeping a close watch on six Lok Sabha and 42 Assembly segments in nine districts of the state, which will go to polls in the last phase of elections on June 1, DGP Arun Kumar Sarangi said on Friday.

He said the constituencies going to poll on Saturday are sensitive from the law and order point of view.

The police chief informed that 36,000 police personnel, including 126 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), 86 platoons of Odisha Armed Police and 20,500 civil police personnel, have been deployed in these constituencies – Mayurbhanj, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapada and Jagatsinghpur. The civil police personnel include 44 Additional SSPs, 99 DSPs, 210 inspectors, 2,583 SI/ASI, 9,476 havildars and constables, and 8,083 home guards & GRs.

“Four young IPS Officers of SDPO rank will be in-charge of Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapada, Mayurbhanj, Bhadrak and Balasore districts,” he said.

At least 12 DSPs, 42 Assembly Supervising Officers in the rank of Additional SPs with striking force, 84 DSPs (2 for each assembly segment) with striking force, and 199 Sector Officers in the rank of inspector with striking force have been deployed in each assembly constituency divided into around five sectors, he told a presser.

He further said that the CAPF will be deployed in 2,280 critical/vulnerable booths. “There will 843 mobile units and an additional 130 mobile units by CAPF Company Commander/Deputy Commandant will oversee them.”

Sixty inter-district border check posts, 255 flying squad, and 255 static surveillance teams have been deployed while EVM strong rooms have been set up at 13 locations, which are being guarded round-the-clock by CAPF and SAP in a two-tiered security system.

Sarangi informed that a total of 36 election-related cases have been registered in the districts going to poll on June 1 and actions have been taken against 49 accused persons. He informed that four Assembly segments were particularly communally sensitive so extra forces have been deployed there. “Police have immediately responded to all poll-related violence and action has been taken against the culprits,” he said.

At least 21 inter-state border check posts have also been set up in Balasore and Mayurbhaj districts, bordering West Bengal and Jharkhand, respectively, from where live streaming is being done via CCTV. West Bengal and Jharkhand similarly have 19 check posts on their side, he said.

He also expressed at the impressively low number of re-polls  in the first three-round elections. “Repolling was held in only two booths of the state at Kantamal of Kandhamal in Boudh district,” he added.

A total of 99,55,556 voters  are eligible to exercise their franchise at 10,882 polling booths in these eight districts, mostly in coastal Odisha. While 20% of these polling stations have been declared critical, another 20% are model booths.