EC seeks 3.4 lakh CAPF personnel for deployment in LS polls, Assembly elections in 4 states

The Election Commission (EC) has sought 3.4 lakh Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) personnel for deployment in a phased manner during the upcoming Lok Sabha election and Assembly polls in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim.

The poll panel has also sought adequate rolling stocks with all appropriate facilities in the trains, thereby ensuring hassle-free mobilisation and a timely movement of the forces to perform election duties.

In a communication to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the EC has said the chief electoral officers of all the states and Union territories have requested for the deployment of CAPFs for poll-related duties, such as area domination, confidence-building measures, poll day-related duties, guarding of electronic voting machines (EVMs) and strong room centres, counting centre security etc. during the elections.

The commission has considered the requests made by the state CEOs and decided to deploy a maximum of around 3,400 companies of CAPFs in all states and Union territories in phases to ensure free, fair and peaceful elections, the communication said.

A CAPF company comprises around 100 personnel.

A maximum of 920 companies of CAPFs are expected to be deployed in West Bengal in a phased manner, followed by 635 companies in Jammu and Kashmir, 360 companies in Chhattisgarh, 295 companies in Bihar, 252 companies in Uttar Pradesh and 250 companies each in Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Punjab.

The CAPFs are the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and National Security Guard (NSG).

The combined strength of all the CAPFs is around 10 lakh. The other states where a sizeable number of CAPF personnel are likely to be deployed are — 200 companies each in Gujarat, Manipur, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu, 175 companies in Odisha, 160 companies each in Assam and Telangana, 150 in Maharashtra, 113 in Madhya Pradesh and 100 in Tripura.

The EC said the CAPF personnel so deployed shall be distributed and retained at different intervals according to the scale and schedule. Further, the poll panel said the number of CAPF companies as mentioned is the maximum mobilisation of CAPF personnel to be deployed in any particular phase of an election and retained in a particular state or Union Territory.

The EC said the MHA should take necessary action and issue directions to all concerned to ensure smooth and timely induction and de-induction of the forces at an appropriate time. In a separate communication to the Railway Board, the commission said the Indian Railways has a significant role to play in the induction and de-induction of the forces during the polls.

However, the poll body said various issues were raised by the MHA and CAPFs pertaining to the inconvenience to the security forces during their mobilisation in the elections held in 2022 and 2023. The railway ministry has already been requested to address the concerns so as to avoid a recurrence of such incidents during the train journeys of the security personnel, it said.

However, the issue of availability of rolling stocks recurred in the elections held in November-December 2023, resulting in a delay in the movement of the forces. Keeping this in mind, the Railway Board has been asked to appoint nodal officers at its headquarters and at the zonal level for smooth coordination during the election process and share the list of such officers, along with their contact details, with the EC and the CAPFs’ nodal officers in advance.

The commission has asked the Railway Board to ensure the availability of rolling stocks for the movement of the CAPFs, make provisions for a sufficient number of coaches in the trains for a hassle-free travel of the troops (around 24 coaches be provided in each train), ensure comfortable seating and resting arrangements for the personnel, particularly during extended journeys, and make provisions for essential facilities, such as electricity, water, fans, air-conditioners etc. for the train journeys in the months of summer.NATIONALNEWDELHI