The Hindu : Karnataka News : Poll staff, security steps in place in Tumkur

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Saturday, May 10, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka

Poll staff, security steps in place in Tumkur

Staff Correspondent

Security forces have been drawn from neighbouring districts

3,557 police personnel have been deployed for security
2,152 polling stations have been set up in 11 constituencies

TUMKUR: Poll staff numbering to 10,148 left here by 356 buses to go to polling stations in the 11 constituencies in Tumkur district.

Three thousand five hundred and fifty seven police personnel have been deployed for security. Forty-three troops of reserve police, including 22 troops from the Centre, have been positioned at strategic locations for emergencies.

The election mustering centres at Government Polytechnic, Sri Krishna Nagar Police Parade Ground, and Government High School Ground wore a busy look from the early hours of Friday to the evening.

There are 18,50,064 voters, including 9,10,278 women, in the district. There are 101 candidates in the fray. Polling will begin at 7 a.m. on Saturday.

There are 2,152 polling stations, including 42 extension centres. While Tumkur has two constituencies – city and rural, the remaining nine taluks – CN Halli, Tiptur, Turuvekere, Kunigal, Koratagere, Gubbi, Sira, Pavagada and Madhugiri – have one constituency each.

Of the polling booths, 602 are categorised as “highly sensitive”. The whole of Madhugiri constituency is classified as “sensitive” in the background of the violence that marred it in the past two elections — the zilla and taluk panchayat elections and the Local Body Elections.

Drafted

Home Guards (2,164 ) and 48 Forest guards have also been drafted for poll security.

Security forces have been drawn from neighbouring districts, where the polling is scheduled for the second phase. Besides 356 buses, 779 vehicles (including 29 lorries) are engaged for election work.

Incomplete

Elaborate arrangements have been made for the polling. Ironically, the people of Tumkur district will go to the polls with the “still incomplete electoral rolls” in the district.

The district election branch “short-closed” the process of revision of polls as early as on April 16, instead of closing it on April 27, as stipulated by the Election Commission of India. Many people could not include their names.

Missing from rolls

In the Poor House Colony in Tumkur City alone, more than 11,000 persons complained that their names were not in the rolls. Interestingly, a majority of them belong to Muslims and they are poor.

According to Abdul Sattar Sab, resident of the 4th A cross in the colony, 20,000 residents of the colony submitted applications for inclusion of their names in the rolls.

Only 9,000 names were added. He said: “We gave the applications a second time. But, revision process was stopped by then.”

The ‘short-closing’ of the revision process could affected the prospects of a few candidates in the district. The Saturday polling will decide the fate of 101 candidates, including three women — P.A. Gayatri Devi (Congress), Hemashri H.N. (BSP) and Anita (independent). .

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