The northeastern state of Tripura is making comprehensive preparations for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, with a keen focus on ensuring a free, fair, and peaceful voting process.

  While talking to media, the Chief Electoral Officer, Puneet Agarwal, discussed the meticulous planning that is being done to ensure smooth polls. Agarwal emphasised the goal of achieving maximum voter turnout, reflecting the democratic ethos of the state and its people.

 “The wide guidelines given by the Election Commission of India have been followed, and in all the districts having different constituencies, the ARO (assistant returning officers) are working. In the two parliamentary constituencies, Tripura 1 West and Tripura 2 East, the ROs (returning officers), District Magistrates of West Tripura and Dhalai Tripura have taken the necessary action to arrange a fair election procedure,” Agarwal said.

 He further said that, from a security point of view, to strengthen the state police, nearly 70 companies of central forces (CAPF) had already arrived and more than 15 companies of central forces are yet to come.

 “The forces had taken charge of all the security measures and have been dominating the vulnerable areas. Flag marches, foot patrolling and mobile patrolling are going on both days and nights. The ROs, AROs, SDMs and SDPOs are continuously monitoring the whole process. We are ready to conduct fair and complete violence-free elections,” Agarwal added.

 West Tripura District Election Officer and Returning Officer Vishal Kumar made a detailed inspection of the premises, verifying the readiness and security of the arrangements. His findings underscore the state’s commitment to conducting a seamless electoral process.

“For the election going to be held on April 19 in the West Tripura Lok Sabha Constituency, the necessary preparations have been completed. Especially the counting hall and Strong Room preparation are complete. Especially among 30 assembly segments, 14 assembly segments are under West Tripura Lok Sabha Constituency, For them, the preparation of the recipient centre and dispatch centre is going quickly and will be completed within 4-5 days. I want to assure all the voters and especially all the political parties that all work related to Counting Hall and Strong Rooms is well completed and we are ready to conduct a free and fair election,” Kumar said.

 Adding to the preparations, Tripura West District’s Superintendent of Police, Kiran Kumar, affirmed the robust security measures in place. These measures aim to create a conducive environment for voters, free from fear and intimidation, reinforcing the sanctity of the electoral process.

 “We had made a detailed arrangement for the upcoming election. Central forces had also arrived and more forces were yet to come. We are doing regular flag marches and night patrols. All the sensitive places are covered by policies. We are having SST 42 Naka checkpoints and 42 FST Naka points in which vehicle checking is going on. We had made a complaint cell; whatever political complaint came, we took action immediately. All the SDPOs and Police sector officers are informed immediately and take action. Every measure is taken to perform a proper and fair election,” Kiran said.

The elections for two parliamentary seats, along with a by-election for the 7-Ramnagar Assembly Constituency, are scheduled for April 18 and April 26.