CCTV cameras to monitor most sensitive polling stations

PESHAWAR: The most sensitive polling stations will be monitored through CCTV as security arrangements have been finalized for the general elections slated for February 8.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry Inspector General of Police Akhtar Hayat Khan and visited most of the KP districts to review the security arrangements for the polls.

In Peshawar police officers were directed to inspect the most sensitive polling stations and inspect the CCTV coverage and other measures taken for peaceful polling during the election day.

“The CCTV cameras have been installed in over 570 most sensitive polling stations in the provincial capital that will be monitored throughout during the polling,” Capital City Police Officer Ashfaq Anwar told The News.

He added if there were 4 or five booths in any most sensitive polling stations, CCTVs will be installed on each of them.

According to the CCPO, seven policemen each would be deployed at most sensitive, five at sensitive and four at a normal polling station on the election day.

Due to the law and order situation and challenges, over 88 per cent polling stations to be set up in Peshawar and 72 per cent in the entire Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for the upcoming general elections have been declared either sensitive or most sensitive.

Around 1280 polling stations are to be set up in Peshawar for the February 8 general elections. An official said out of the total, 630 polling stations are declared sensitive while over 500 are declared most sensitive.

Over 12,000 policemen supported by the platoons of Frontier Constabulary will be deployed for security during the elections in Peshawar.

Out of 15, 737 polling stations to be set up for polls across KP, only 4,344 stations, less than 28 per cent, are declared normal.

On the other hand 4,812 polling stations have been declared most sensitive while 6,581 are declared sensitive for the upcoming general elections.

The capital city is among the districts declared sensitive for the polls. Many southern districts have also been declared sensitive due to frequent attacks and threats.

The cops have been directed to increase patrolling and set up checking points at the entrances to check the suspicious elements.

Police across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are on high alert to maintain law and order during and before the polls. Brandishing of weapons and pillion riding has already been banned after Section 144 was imposed by the respective district administration.

Apart from the security arrangements for the polling stations and public meetings, the candidates have been advised to hire private guards from registered companies due to the law and order situation and challenges.

In KP, elections would be held for 45 general seats of the National Assembly and 115 general seats of the provincial Assembly in the province.

As per the security plan, 11 security personnel would be deployed at most sensitive polling stations in the southern belt and merged districts of the province.

In other parts of KP, seven security personnel would be deployed at every most sensitive polling station.

In southern and merged districts, seven security personnel would be deployed at each of the sensitive polling stations and four security personnel at each of the normal polling stations.

In the rest of the KP, five security personnel will perform duty at each sensitive and four at each normal polling station.