West Bengal Assembly Elections: Central Forces Deployment for Phase Two Revealed
Central Forces Readied for Upcoming Elections
Kolkata: On Tuesday, the Election Commission disclosed plans to deploy 2,321 companies of central forces for the second phase of the West Bengal assembly elections scheduled for April 29.
Each company will consist of a minimum of 72 armed personnel, according to an official statement.
The deployment strategy was formulated based on an assessment of vulnerabilities and previous election-related incidents to ensure heightened security, as stated by an official from the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer's office.
This phase will see voting in 142 assembly constituencies.
The central forces, managed by the Union Home Ministry, will include members from various units such as the CRPF, BSF, CISF, ITBP, SSB, NSG, and Assam Rifles.
For the initial phase covering 152 constituencies, the Election Commission had arranged for 2,407 companies of central forces.
The South 24 Parganas district is set to experience the largest deployment in this phase, with 409 companies assigned across the Sundarbans, Baruipur, and Diamond Harbour police districts.
In Kolkata, 273 companies will be stationed, while Purba Bardhaman will have 260 and Hooghly (Rural) will see 234 companies deployed.
The Barasat police district will receive 112 companies, Bongaon will have 62, and Basirhat will be allocated 123 companies. Additionally, the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate will have 50 companies.
Barrackpore Police Commissionerate is expected to receive 160 companies, with Howrah seeing 147 companies in rural areas and 110 under the police commissionerate.
In Nadia district, Krishnanagar will have 158 companies and Ranaghat will see 127.
Chandannagar Police Commissionerate will be allocated 83 companies, while Asansol-Durgapur Police Commissionerate will have 13.
The Commission has assured that sensitive regions will receive sufficient coverage from central forces.
Furthermore, sources from the poll panel indicated that approximately 500 companies of central forces will remain in the state post-election for security purposes.