Bhubaneswar: In view of the upcoming by-election to the Nuapada Assembly constituency scheduled for November 11, Director General of Police (DGP) Yogesh Bahadur Khurania on Tuesday reviewed the overall security arrangements at the State Police Headquarters in Bhubaneswar.
During the review meeting, DGP Khurania emphasized the need to ensure a free, fair, transparent, and impartial election process. He directed strict compliance with the Election Commission of India (ECI) guidelines, particularly regarding the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct and the security of VIP and VVIP movements during the poll period.
The DGP instructed police officials to intensify preventive actions, including the apprehension of suspicious individuals under Sections 107 and 110 of the Cr.P.C., crackdown on illegal money flow, and the seizure of illicit arms and liquor. He also stressed the importance of executing pending Non-Bailable Warrants (NBWs) ahead of polling day.
Additional DGP (Law and Order) Sanjay Kumar advised strengthening mobile patrolling, deploying flying squads, and establishing check posts at key entry points to intercept suspicious persons and vehicles.
State Intelligence Director R.P. Koche shared critical intelligence inputs and urged DIGs and SPs to closely monitor the law and order situation in and around the constituency.
Addressing the issue of potential Maoist threats, ADGP (Anti-Naxal Operations) Sanjeev Panda informed that combing operations and anti-Maoist drives have been intensified across the affected pockets of the district. He confirmed that comprehensive security plans have already been finalized to ensure peaceful polling.
As part of the election security deployment, a total of 14 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), 5 platoons of OSAP/APR, 35 mobile patrolling units, 18 flying squads, and 18 Static Surveillance Teams (SST) will be mobilized, in addition to the district police personnel.
Range DIG K.B. Singh briefed the DGP on specific strategies aimed at curbing illegal liquor trade, narcotics trafficking, and execution of pending warrants. He also stated that CCTV surveillance and robust security arrangements have been made at strong rooms to safeguard the EVMs.
DGP Khurania assured that the State Police Headquarters would extend all necessary support to Nuapada district to ensure the smooth and secure conduct of the by-election.
The meeting was attended by several senior officers, including DGP (Crime Branch) Vinaytosh Mishra, Director (Intelligence) R.P. Koche, Additional DGP (Headquarters) Arun Bothra, Additional DGP (SAP) Rajesh Kumar, and IG (SAP) S.K. Gajbhiye, among others.
