KORAPUT: Chief electoral officer (CEO) Nikunja Bihari Dhal on Friday expressed confidence that the Naxal menace would not pose a challenge in the upcoming General Elections.
Addressing mediapersons after reviewing the poll preparedness in Koraput, Rayagada, Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts here, Dhal said significant infrastructure development and expansion of mobile network would help in smooth conduct of elections in the four districts.
The CEO said VHF sets will be used in areas with limited mobile network services to maintain uninterrupted communication during the elections. At least 30 companies of CRPF will be deployed across the four districts, - 16 in Malkangiri, eight in Koraput, three each in Rayagada and Nabarangpur to ensure smooth conduct of elections.
Regarding Kotia, he said like previous elections, around 60-70% voter turnout is being expected in the panchayat. Adequate arrangements will be put in place in Kotia for conduct of the polls, he added.
Among others, ADG (Law and Order) Sanjay Kumar, DIG Charan Singh Meena, Koraput collector V Kirti Vasan, SP Abhinav Sonkar and additional CEO Shatrughan Kar attended the meet.