The Maharashtra government will equip about 166 booths in the Naxal-affected Gadchiroli district with satellite phones for smooth polling, as they lack landline or mobile phone connectivity, State Chief Secretary J S Saharia said today.

Saharia, who reviewed the poll preparedness for the April 10 Lok Sabha elections in Vidarbha region, told this at a press conference here. Besides, polling in the naxal-infested areas of Aheri, Aamgaon, Wadsa, Desaiganj areas in Gadchiroli district will be between 7 am and 4 pm for security reasons, he said.

Additional troops of para-military forces are being deployed in the district to avoid any untoward incident.

"The state government and the Election Commission are also making efforts to increase the polling percentage this time which was quite low, like 49 per cent in Nagpur and 53 per cent in Ramtek, last time. We want to raise it to 75 per cent," Saharia said.