35 companies of BSF to be deployed in Odisha for polls: DIG Dhirendra Kumar

Bhubaneswar: As many as 35 companies of the BSF will be deployed in Odisha for the upcoming simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and the state assembly, a senior official of the force said on Monday.

Border Security Force DIG Dhirendra Kumar, while addressing reporters here, said 35 companies (each company comprising around 100 personnel) will be deployed in sensitive areas, including Maoist-affected pockets, for smooth conduct of the elections.

"We have earlier ensured smooth conduct of the 2014 and 2019 elections in Odisha. Panchayat elections were also held in 2022 after nearly two decades in Swabhiman Anchal, which was earlier a Maoist-affected region. We will ensure smooth elections in 2024 as well," Kumar said.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) had recently announced that a total of 75 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), including the BSF, will be deployed in Odisha for smooth conduct of the elections.

Kumar said that the BSF has been deployed in Odisha for anti-naxal operations since 2010, and during the past 14 years, 65 Maoists have been killed, 793 arrested and 632 have surrendered.

Besides, a total of 496 IEDs have been seized by the BSF in the state, he said.

Maoist activities have almost ceased in Malkangiri and Koraput districts as no major incident had been reported in the recent past, the BSF officer said.

"Now, our focus is on Naxal-affected areas in Kandhamal, Boudh and Kalahandi districts. Maoists are now confined to only two-three districts of Odisha. The state will be made Naxal-free in the next two years," he asserted.