Malkangiri: Six polling parties were left to their fate and they managed to reach the district headquarters in Malkangiri from the polling booth on Friday morning after covering a distance of about 15 km by foot through the dense forest cover.
According to sources, six polling parties having 36 staff had their election duty at Mudulipada in Bonda Ghat of the district on Thursday.
After their duty got over in the evening, the SOG jawans advised them to travel by foot as there was the risk of a Maoist attack if they took a vehicle. They assured the teams to accompany them to the district headquarters.
Acting on their advice, they began walking through the dense forest.
As it rained in the night, the polling teams took shelter under the tarpaulin they were carried with them. After spending the whole night inside the forest, the teams set off on their onward journey to the district headquarters by foot in the wee hours and reached their destination after nearly four hours.
