The Assam Government has reviewed the security deployment across the State ahead of the counting of votes on Friday even as the Government has decided to ban victory processions in 11 districts.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the State-level Crisis Management Group here.
The meeting chaired by Assam Chief Secretary Jitesh Khosla also decided to keep the Army in stand-by mode for quick deployment and continue with the helicopter surveillance in most of the vulnerable areas of Bodoland Territorial Areas Districts (BTAD) and along India-Bhutan border.
Officials of the Home and Political department on Thursday said that over 100 companies of the Central and State police have also been deployed across the State to deal with any situation that may arise during and after the counting of votes.
The State Government had already set up 141 fixed security pickets and 35 mobile pickets in BTAD areas, which had witnessed three incidents of militants’ attack on Bengali speaking Muslims in BTAD that claimed 46 lives.
The counting will take place in 142 counting rooms under 51 counting centres across the State, officials of the election department said, while adding that over 6,000 officials will take part in the counting exercise on Friday. Elections to the 14 lok Sabha constituencies were held in three phase in Assam on April 7, April 12 and April 24. 168 candidates have contested polls in Assam this year.
“Prohibitory order under section 144 to be enforced strictly and victory processions not to be allowed in 11 sensitive districts — Kokrajhar, Baksa, Chirang, Dhubri, Goalpara, Barpeta, Nalbari, Bongaigaon, Kamrup, Udalguri and Darrang,” a senior State Home department officials said. There would also be one Central Observer in each of the 51 counting centres, the officials said.