Staff Reporter:
Inspector General of Police (IGP) Baharul Alam yesterday said all preparations have been complet-ed to ensure peaceful, orderly and festive voting in the upcoming 13th National Parliament elec-tion scheduled for February 12.
“A three-stage security arrangement has been put in place at more than 42,000 polling centers across the country. Each centre will have a static police presence, supported by mobile patrol teams and striking forces ready to respond to any emergency,” he said.
He made the remarks while briefing journalists on the overall law and order situation ahead of the election at a press conference held yesterday at the Police Headquarters Media Centre.
Highlighting the use of technology in election security, the police chief said CCTVs have been installed at around 80 to 90 percent of polling centers.
“Body cameras will be deployed at risky centers, while police superintendents will use drone cam-eras based on local needs and capacity,” he added.
According to the IGP, a total of 157,805 police personnel will be deployed directly for election se-curity. Of them, 93,391 will serve as static forces at polling centers, while 29,798 will act as sup-port personnel.
In total, 187,603 police members will be engaged under the election security plan, he said.
As part of efforts to maintain law and order, the Ministry of Home Affairs has ordered licensed arms holders to deposit their firearms at police stations, the police chief said.
Under this directive, 27,995 licensed and legal weapons have already been deposited, he added.
The IGP also said that, alongside police, members of the armed forces, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and around 600,000 Ansar personnel will be deployed nationwide to ensure overall security during the election period.
Additional Inspectors General AKM Awlad Hossain (Administration), Md Akram Hossain (Fi-nance), Mosleh Uddin Ahmed (Logistics and Asset Acquisition), and Sarder Nurul Amin (Devel-opment) were also present at the press conference.
