415 Companies of Central Forces to Be Deployed in First Phase

At least 415 companies of central forces will be deployed for the first phase of polling on March 27 in West Bengal, a senior official said on Saturday. So far, 200 companies of CAPF, including 30 companies of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and five companies each of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), have reached the state, he said.

“The rest 215 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) will be reaching the state in the next couple of days.These forces will be deployed in the assembly constituencies, which will be going to the polls in the first phase,” the official said.

Each company of the cetral forces consists of 100 personnel. In the first phase, elections will be held in 30 assembly constituencies in five districts. Total 10,288 polling booths have been set up for the phase, he said.

There will be 3,127 booths in Purulia, 1,328 in Bankura, 2,437 in Purba Medinipur and 2,089 in Paschim Medinipur, the official said. During the day, EC’s special observer Ajay Nayak and police observer Vivek Dubey held a series of meetings with senior officials of the administration in the districts.

Besides, they also met Additional Director-General of Police (Law and Order) Jag Mohan, who is the state police’s nodal officer. “Most of the discussion was on the law and order, and the preparedness for the polls to be held in the first phase,” the official said.

Special expenditure observer B Murali Kumar will be arriving in Kolkata on Monday, he added.