Special security arrangements have been made in polling booths located in left wing extremist affected areas of Odisha going to polls on May 13, director general of police Arun Sarangi said on Sunday.
Voting will be held in four Lok Sabha and 28 MLA segments in nine districts in the first phase on May 13, of which six districts -- Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Nabarangpur, Nuapada and Kalahandi -- are Maoist affected, he told a press conference.
Elections will be held in 7,298 polling stations, of which 537 booths are located in the LWE (left-wing extremism) affected areas.
To ensure free and fair elections in these areas, special operational arrangements have been launched, Sarangi said.
"We have launched 539 anti-Maoist operations in these districts since January first week and one Maoist leader was neutralised in Nabarangpur district, while 138 operational parties of CAPF and 37 units of SOG/DVF (state armed police force) are in action," the DGP said.
The security force units are conducting operations and area-dominating exercises in the Maoist-hit areas, he said.
As the election in Chhattisgarh has already been completed, it was expected that some Maoists may infiltrate into Odisha from the neighbouring state. So, Chhattisgarh is also launching operations in five locations whereas Andhra Pradesh is launching nine such operations in the bordering areas, the Odisha DGP said. -- PTI