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Polls: tight security in sensitive areas

Staff Reporter

Special measures in 3 districts

BERHAMPUR: Administration and police in Ganjam, Gajapati and Kandhamal districts have started keeping a vigil on sensitive and hypersensitive booths as the polling process is to start from next week.

In Ganjam district there are 6,943 booths of which one third have been marked as sensitive due to political volatility of the areas.Forty nine mobile patrolling units and 21 platoons of armed policemen would be deployed for the peaceful conduct of polls in the district. Three Orissa State Armed Police platoons along with six platoons of Armed Police Reserve would be deployed in Ganjam police district.

Combing operation

In naxal-affected Gajapati district combing operation is on in the remote areas. Out of its 1526 booths in 129 panchayats 576 booths have been marked sensitive and 584 as hypersensitive. Extra vigil is being kept on 626 booths in 63 naxal prone panchyats as the naxals have already given a call for poll boycott. Largest number of hypersensitive booths is in naxal infested Gosani block of the district.

In Kandhamal district after the arrest of a naxal from Kotgarh block involved in extortion from Baliguda area police stepped up vigil in areas where naxal presence is suspected.

"We are extra vigilant at Kotgarh block as naxals and their supporters have some base in this area," said Kandhmal Superintendent of Police S.K.Gajbhiye. Till date naxals have not resorted to any violent activity in this district

Of the 2083 booths in Kandhamal district 752 are hypersensitive and 425 are sensitive.

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