Tripura ADC polls starts amid tight security

Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) polls have started in Tripura amid tight security.

The voting started at 7:00 am and since then long queues were seen outside the polling station and women participation was noticeable.

"Here voting is taking place peacefully and you can see voters in long queues including large number of women turning out right from the morning to cast their vote. There is good security arrangement so that we can cast out vote without any fear," said Susmita Debbarma, a home-maker.

"Vote is taking very peacefully and there is tight security. We all have come to cast our vote and so there is a good gathering here," said Samsu Mia, a farmer.

"I am enjoying as for the first time I am voting. Good numbers of people have gathered to cast their vote and the security arrangement is tight," expressed Maphu Mia, a first time voter.

Around 7.58 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise to decide the fate of record-breaking 177 numbers of candidates.

For the first time Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) are being used in the TTAADC vote and to ensure free and fair elections, 16 observers and 165 sector officers have been appointed.

Each constituency is likely to witness multi-cornered fight in the tribal council with five to eight candidates contesting the election.

Around 13,000 security personnel including 6,900 TSR personnel, 4000 state police, 21 companies of Central Armed Police Force ( CAPF), besides 300 forest guards and 400 Home Guards has been deployed so that voters could cast their votes without any fear.

The Border Security Force (BSF) authority has been asked to keep a check along the Indo-Bangladesh border to ensure incident-free polls.

Out of the 1,070 polling booths, 79 booths have been identified as hyper sensitive, 360 booths as sensitive and 631 as normal.

Only a decade back polling in Tripura was a very tough exercise as banned militant organizations use to boycott the election and disturb the election process but during the last few election the state has records one of the highest polling in the country.