Security tightened in Madhes for elections

. Kathmandu: Tight security arrangements have been made across Madhes province to ensure the free, peaceful and safe election to the members of the House of Representatives scheduled for March 4. According to the State Police Office, drones and CCTV cameras have been used to monitor the sensitive polling stations.

There are a total of 2,TAG_OPEN_p_7 160 polling stations and 4,471 polling stations in the eight districts of the province. Of them, 57 per cent of the polling stations have been categorised as highly sensitive. Out of 296 polling stations in Saptari district, 209 are very sensitive. Polling stations in Siraha, Dhanusha, Mahottari, Sarlahi, Rautahat and Bara are also in the sensitive list.

According to Province Police Chief DIG Govinda Thapaliya, the polling stations have been classified on the basis of voter pressure, geographical conditions, socio-cultural environment and past events.TAG_OPEN_p_6 The 464-kilometer-long open border has increased the risk of illegal entry, double voting, and more.

A total of 12,600 Nepal Police, 28,295 Election Police, 4,336 Armed Police Force and 2,832 temporary police will be mobilized in Madhes under the security arrangement.TAG_OPEN_p_5 The security cordon has been further strengthened with the participation of the Nepal Army.

As Dhanusha and Mahottari districts share a 39-km border with the Indian state of Bihar, additional security meetings and coordination have already been held.TAG_OPEN_p_4 DIG Thapaliya said that preparations are underway to mobilize more than 50,000 security personnel across the state.