As Lok Sabha polls are approaching near, election officials are gearing up to ensure 100 per cent voting. To ensure smoth elections in elephant-affected areas of Chhattisgarh, officials are taking up certain measures such as conducting public awareness campaigns, police deployment, Hathi mitra dal, and others.
Speaking about the poll preperations, Jashpur Collector Ravi Mittal stated: "The administration and the forest department are working together on our elephant-affected booths. People are being motivated there to vote as much as possible. Elephants are also being monitored and people are being assured that they can vote comfortably."
"There is movement of elephants in the Kunkuri area throughout the year. Given this, the support of our forest department team and Hathi Mitra Dal which has been formed in all the villages to keep an eye on the elephants. Lok Sabha elections are to be held here in the coming time and Assembly elections have also taken place, keeping in view that the Forest Division officials are serious about ensuring that elephants do not cause any loss of life," said Forest Officer S.K. Hota.
The Forest Department plays a crucial role in raising public awareness, especially in the interior areas of the forest where its access is prominent, according to an official.
Highlighting the poll startegy, Forest Department Official (DFO) Jitendra Kumar Upadhyay stated: "Our strategy is the same as it was during the assembly elections. The police and forest department are deployed two days in advance within a radius of 4km of the booths, the location of the elephant is given to the DFO and he further shares it with the SP and other security personnel and we monitor it. The last time we had done this we got complete success. This time too, our intention is to mark the villages where there are elephants in the forest and keep them within a radius of 4-5 km of the booth. At the same time, we take their location to see what are the chances of the elephant coming to the village. A day before, if there is a possibility of the elephant coming to the village, then the friendly team and the forest department together keep the elephant towards the forest."
Voting in Chhattisgarh's Jashpur is set to be held on May 7. Jashpur falls under Raigarh Lok Sabha constituency, which is scheduled to go for polls in May this year (Phase-3).