HYDERABAD: For the first time, drones will be deployed for surveillance to closely monitor the polling process for the Jubilee Hills Assembly byelection on November 11 where 58 candidates are in the fray.
Drones will be deployed at all the 139 building locations where 407 polling stations have been established. Live webcasting will be carried out from all polling stations for peaceful polling and maintaining law and order, Hyderabad District Election Officer RV Karnan said.
As many as 226 of the 407 polling stations in 65 locations have been identified as critical polling stations, where paramilitary forces will be deployed for maintaining law and order.
Addressing media on Sunday, Karnan along with Hyderabad JCP Tafseer Iqbal and others said that 407 polling stations have been set up across 139 locations in the Jubilee Hills constituency, with 3,000 polling staff and 1,761 police personnel have been deployed.
A three-tier security system has been put in place. As per election rules, canvassing and loudspeaker use will remain prohibited during the 48-hour silence period. Polling will be held from 7 am to 6 pm with an additional hour permitted compared to earlier elections.
Given the large number of candidates (58) in the fray, EVMs consisting of one Control Unit (CU) and one Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) are provided to all the polling stations.
The Assembly constituency has 4,01,365 voters, including 2,08,561 (male), 1,92,779 (female) and 25 (other voters). Counting of votes will be done in 10 rounds for which 42 counting tables have been arranged. Mobile deposit counters are being opened at all the polling stations to facilitate the voters to deposit their mobile before entering into the polling station and to take back after casting their vote.
As per the orders, the wine shops will remain closed till the evening of November 11 and on November 14 from 7 am till the declaration of the result. Officials have urged the voters to come forward and exercise their right to vote and improve polling percentage which has been low in the earlier polls.
So far, 27 election-related cases have been registered and Rs 3.6 crore crore in cash has been seized. Nearly 230 rowdy sheeters have been bound over as a precautionary measure.