Short staffed, Gzb police urges DM to move EVMs to one place

Ghaziabad police has requested the district magistrate to shift all the EVMs to one place in order to ensure strong security for the machines as the force is facing a shortage of personnel due to the ongoing elections in the state.
Police sources said that around 60 per cent of the personnel have been deputed on poll duty out of Ghaziabad due to which there were concerns about the security for the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) kept at three places.
At present, EVMs are being kept in strongrooms in Govindpuram wheat wholesale market, Sainik Kalyan Kendra and Rajkiya Mahila Polytechnic Centre, where personnel of Uttar Pradesh Provincial Armed Constabulary and local police are keeping guard round-the-clock.

"We have requested District Magistrate to shift all EVMs to one place so that these machines may be protected well. Several of our police personnel have been sent to other districts as elections are being held," Ghaziabad Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Sachi Ghildiyal told PTI.
The SSP said that if all EVMs are shifted to one place, wherever the District Administration chooses, the police force, which is currently guarding them in three different places, could protect them in a much more stronger manner at one place.
"There has been huge shortage of police force in Ghaziabad as more than 60 per cent police personnel of the district have been sent to other districts where elections are being held," said another senior police officer, who didn't wish to be named.

At present, safety of EVMs have now become the matter of concern for district authorities and police.
Recently, the District Magistrate SVS Ranga Rao had asked electoral officials to ensure that EVMs, kept in the wheat wholesale market in Govindpuram, are protected from rats. He had issued an order to use rat-killers in the strongroom so that rodents don't damage the EVMs by cutting the wires or electronic circuits or nibble on buttons.
The Lok Sabha elections for Ghaziabad seat, from where BJP's V K Singh, AAP candidate Shazia Ilmi and Congress' Raj Babbar and 12 others are in the fray, were held on April 10.