The Election Commission of India has directed the West Bengal Police and administrative authorities to expedite the identification of sensitive areas ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.
The commission has asked officials to complete the process, if possible, by the second week of March.
Based on the sensitivity assessment of these areas, the commission will prepare a preliminary deployment plan for the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF).
Notably, the commission has decided to deploy CAPF personnel in the state even before the announcement of polling dates and the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct.
A total of 480 CAPF companies will be deployed in the state by 10 March. Of these, 240 companies will be stationed on 1 March, while the remaining 240 will be deployed on 10 March.
A preliminary meeting was held on Monday evening with top state police officials.
During the meeting, the commission clearly instructed that the initial 480 companies to be deployed between 1 March and 10 March should not remain idle. Instead, they should be utilised for preliminary area domination exercises.
The deployment of the 480 CAPF companies will be carried out in consultation with central observers appointed by the Election Commission for West Bengal.
Sources in the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal, said that the commission has also directed the central observers to monitor the deployment process and submit daily reports.
Earlier, the commission had asked the West Bengal government to prepare a detailed deployment plan in consultation with the concerned CAPF units and their chief force coordinators.
It was clarified that the movement and deployment of CAPF personnel would be coordinated by the Central Reserve Police Force.
In the first phase of deployment, 240 companies will include 110 companies of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), 55 companies of the Border Security Force (BSF), 21 companies of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), 27 companies of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), and 27 companies of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).
In the second phase, another 240 companies will be deployed, comprising 120 companies of the CRPF, 65 companies of the BSF, 16 companies of the CISF, 20 companies of the ITBP, and 19 companies of the SSB.
The commission’s move is aimed at ensuring a peaceful and secure environment in the run-up to the Assembly elections in West Bengal.