SAMBALPUR/KEONJHAR : As many as 8,18,756 voters including 4,08,531 females will exercise their franchise in the Sambalpur district which comprises four Assembly segments-Sambalpur, Rairakhol, Kuchinda and Rengali. All the four Assembly segments under Sambalpur Parliamentary constituency will go to polls in third phase of polls on Tuesday. Additional District Magistrate (ADM), Sambalpur Ajay Jena said voting will start at 7 am and conclude at 4 pm in Rairakhol and Kuchinda Assembly constituencies, which are affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE). However, voting will start at 7 am and conclude at 6 pm in two other Assembly segments-Sambalpur and Rengali.
Official sources said, 935 polling booths have been set up in the district of which 346 are identified as critical. Out of the 346 polling booths, 58 are in LWE affected areas. While CCTV cameras will be installed in 39 polling booths, videography will be conducted at 21 in the district. Similarly, web casting will be done from 103 polling booths and micro-observers deployed at 109 polling booths of the district. In Deogarh, 2, 39,388 voters including 1, 18,471 females will cast their votes. Of the total 337 polling booths in the Deogarh Assembly seat, 76 are critical.
In Keonjhar, the highest number of security personnel have been deployed in Ghasipura Assembly segment which is a LWE affected area, said Keonjhar Collector Ashish Thakre and SP Jayanarayan Pankaj here on Monday. At least four companies of CRPF and other armed police personnel have been deployed in Ghasipura, the SP said. Around 247 booths out of 300 have been put under close surveillance of micro-observers, CCTV cameras, web casting and videography.
Central Armed Police Force personnel will keep watch on 58 booths in Ghasipura Assembly segment and 28 of Anandpur. As many as 726 booths have been identified as sensitive in the district, the Collector said. A total of 183 CCTV cameras have been installed in different booths, he informed. Around 35,336 new voters have been included in the revised voters’ list the six Assembly segments of Keonjhar Parliamentary constituency.