Transport Deprtment requisitions over 500 heavy/light vehicles for poll duty
More to be requisitioned for 350 Coys of SFs
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, January 10 2012: For transportation of polling officials and security personnel to far flung areas in connection with the 10th Manipur Legislative Assembly scheduled on January 28, Transport department authorities have requisitioned over 500 heavy and light heavy vehicles till January 9 .

Talking to The Sangai Express today, Transport Department Director Sh Bijenkumar Sharma said various types of vehicles have already been provided to observers of election Commission of India since December 26 last.

As ferrying polling officials and security personnel would require requisition of many more vehicles Transport personnel have rounded up over 500 vehicles which include bus, mini truck, DI Tata, Tata Sumo and Bolero Jeep till yesterday.

It is said that additional State and Central para-military forces requisitioned from various parts of the country, particularly from the eastern region, would be deployed for the State election.

The security personnel to be deployed here include personnel of the CRPF, BSF, ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police), SSB (Seema Suraksha Bal), Railways Protection Force (RPF), Arunachal Pradesh police, Assam police, Mizoram Police, Orissa police, Tripura police and Jharkhand Armed Police.

Some of the vehicles which have been requisitioned for election duty

While requisite vehicles for 100 companies of security forces have already been delivered, there is still need for similar provision for 350 companies as recommended by the Election Commission of India.

Informing that the requisitioned vehicles are being stationed at the periphery of the 1st Bn Manipur Rifles from where some battalion of security forces from outside the State have already fanned out to interior areas of poll-bound Manipur, the Director also confided that Palace Compound would be the departure point for vehicles ferrying State forces, election personnel and poll equipment.

Maintaining that a receipt section of the Department has been operating from Palace Compound where arrangement is being made for lodging drivers and their assistants, he said Palace Compound has been specifically transformed as the Department's election cell with its headquarters currently serving as the control room.

Stating that a total of 120 of the department personnel are being utilised in poll-related duties, Bijenkumar said advance payments have been made to vehicle owners/drivers for their conveniences.

With regard to expenditures incurred on hiring vehicles, he said all payments had been cleared for vehicles requisitioned for the general elections of 2007 and subsequent Parliamentary election but the department faced deficit when the autonomous district council elections were held last year as hiring charge for vehicles deployed in Tamenglong district is yet to be cleared.

The Director, however, conceded that details with regard to expenditures for hiring of vehicles for the upcoming poll is being assessed and could be finalised in a day or two.

He opined that taking into account hike in prices of petrol/diesel and motor parts the total amount might escalate compared to the previous hustings.