Paramilitary forces to be deployed at vulnerable polling booths

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, April 16

Deputy Commissioner (DC) Varinder Kumar Sharma, Commissioner of Police (CP) Gurpreet Singh Bhullar and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Navjot Singh Mahal said today that the district administration would make elaborate security arrangements for 379 vulnerable polling booths in the district.

Presiding over a meeting to review the arrangements at the District Administrative Complex here, the Deputy Commissioner, the CP and the SSP said the administration had completed the vulnerability mapping of the district as per which 379 of the 1,863 polling booths had been identified as vulnerable. They said special care would be taken to man the vulnerable polling booths across the district.

The officials said for ensuring a free and fair poll, the Punjab Police, along with the paramilitary forces, would be deployed at these booths.

At some booths, micro-observers would be deployed and on the others, webcasting would be ensured on the directions of the Election Commission.

The officials said the administration would ensure that the vulnerable booths were either covered by the paramilitary force, webcasting or micro observers.

They said it was making every effort to ensure that each and every polling booth of the Assembly segment was provided adequate checks and balances for ensuring a transparent polling. Reiterating the firm commitment of the administration to hold ensuring the Lok Sabha poll peacefully, the officials said anyone trying to disturb peace during the elections would be dealt strictly.