Kolkata, February 24 – Amidst the crucial Assembly elections in West Bengal, scheduled later this year, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has directed the state police administration to complete the process of identifying sensitive areas in the state at the earliest, and if possible, by the second week of March.
Based on the sensitive areas identified by the state police, the Commission will begin planning the deployment of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), depending on the sensitivity of the specific areas.
The ECI has already decided to deploy the CAPF in the state even before the announcement of the polling dates and the enforcement of the model code of conduct.
A total of 480 companies of CAPF will be deployed in the state by March 10, of which 240 companies will be deployed on March 1 and the remaining 240 companies will be deployed on March 10.
At a preparatory meeting with top police officials in the state on Monday evening, the ECI clearly instructed that the initial 480 companies to be deployed between March 1 and March 10 can be allowed to remain idle, and instead should be utilized for early area dominance.
The deployment of these 480 companies of CAPF should be done in consultation with the central observers appointed by the ECI in West Bengal.
The central observers have also been asked by the Commission to supervise the deployment of CAPF and provide daily reports to the ECI in this matter, sources in the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal, said.
The Commission had already directed the West Bengal government to work out the detailed deployment plan, in consultation with the respective CAPFs and their chief force coordinators. The movement and deployment of CAPFs shall be coordinated by the CRPF, the Commission had clarified.
The first phase of 240 companies that will be deployed on March 1, will include 110 companies of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), 55 companies of Border Security Force (BSF), 21 companies of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), 27 companies of Indo-Tibetan Police Force (ITBP), and 27 companies of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).
The second phase of 240 companies that will be deployed on March 10, will include 120 companies of CRPF, 65 companies of BSF, 16 companies of CISF, 20 companies of ITBP, and 19 companies of SSB.
The de-induction of these 480 companies, i.e., the process of removing troops, equipment, or personnel from a specific area, will be communicated at the appropriate time.