BHUBANESWAR: The Indian Air Force (IAF) has deployed a chopper to pick and drop polling booth officials in hilly terrains and Naxal-affected regions during the Nuapada bypoll on Tuesday.
Officials of at least eight polling booths will be airlifted from Gotma airstrip and dropped at Sunabeda helipad. Nuapada collector Madhusudan Das told TNIE, “The chopper was deployed to ensure the officials reach the polling booths on time. Adequate lights have been installed at Gotma airstrip to make certain the helicopter lands safely even if the polling booth officials depart from Sunabeda late in the evening.”
Sources said the eight polling booths will have at least six officials and two police personnel each. Nuapada SP Amritpal Singh said, “The decision to deploy a chopper was taken as some polling booths are in hilly areas and are affected by Left Wing extremism too.”
The district has been put under a thick blanket of security cover to ensure no untoward incident takes place, he added. A total of 14 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) have been deployed and will be mobilised mostly at the 358 polling booths, said sources.
Sources further said 35 mobile patrolling parties have been deployed to immediately respond to allegations of any irregularity in the polling booths. Besides this, seven quick response teams (QRT) will be engaged to initiate action in case of an emergency.
Police said they are on high alert to tackle any Naxal challenge during the election. Out of the total polling booths, around 47 are critical as they are located in Naxal-affected areas. While nine companies of CAPF were already stationed in Nuapada, 14 more companies of CAPF were dispatched to the district to thwart any attempt of Naxal violence, sources said.