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As the polling for the Tamil Nadu Assembly began on Thursday, approximately 1.47 lakh personnel, including police, paramilitary forces, fire and rescue services, forest department staff, prison department personnel, retired military personnel, and home guards, have been assigned to election security duties.
About 23,000 paramilitary personnel from 295 companies have arrived in Tamil Nadu and are actively engaged in security operations, according to police. The security deployment includes 26,203 inspectors, sub-inspectors, and special sub-inspectors, along with 94,598 head constables and constables. Additionally, 12,150 personnel from special task forces have been deployed. Apart from the police and paramilitary forces, around 20,000 retired army personnel, retired police officers, and retired forest guards have also been engaged in election security work. On polling day, special task force personnel will patrol the state in 514 vehicles. They are tasked with responding swiftly to any disturbances and ensuring that law and order is maintained, the police said. Similarly, rapid response teams have been instructed to remain on standby in 1,100 vehicles, along with senior police officials, including Deputy Superintendents of Police, Additional Deputy Superintendents, Superintendents of Police, Deputy Inspectors General, Inspectors General, and Police Commissioners. As 6,300 locations across the state have been identified as sensitive, additional security arrangements have been made in those areas. In 118 constituencies identified as having high cash flow, a larger number of police personnel have been deployed. Likewise, within the 24 Assembly constituencies under the Chennai Police Commissionerate, 198 polling stations have been identified as sensitive. These locations are under close surveillance by the police, with additional security provided by paramilitary forces. A total of 31 companies of paramilitary forces have been deployed in Chennai, significantly higher compared to just 7 companies during the previous Assembly elections. Polling for the Assembly elections began in Tamil Nadu amid tight security on Thursday. The voting will conclude at 6:00 pm today in both states. Polling is being held for 234 Assembly constituencies across Tamil Nadu. The counting of votes is scheduled for May 4. The main contest is expected between the DMK-led alliance, which includes the Indian National Congress, DMDK and VCK, and the National Democratic Alliance led by AIADMK with BJP and PMK as allies. With the DMK banking on its welfare record, the AIADMK-led NDA is fighting for a comeback. Actor-turned-politician Vijay is also set to make his electoral debut with his party TVK, which could turn the contest into a three-way fight. (ANI)
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