Hyderabad, Nov 10 (NationPress) A total of 139 drones will be deployed as part of the arrangements to ensure smooth, free, and fair polling for the by-election to the Jubilee Hills Assembly constituency in Hyderabad on Tuesday.

This marks the first time that authorities are utilizing drones to survey all polling stations within a constituency.

As stated by Telangana Chief Electoral Officer C. Sudharshan Reddy, this drone surveillance initiative is aimed at providing centralized aerial monitoring and real-time situation analysis.

The drones will facilitate close monitoring of the electoral process across 407 polling stations situated in 139 buildings. This real-time surveillance will provide a bird's-eye view, allowing poll authorities to quickly identify any disturbances.

A control room has been established at the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) head office to oversee the drone operations.

The drones were presented to the relevant officials at the distribution, reception, and counting center, where polling officials received EVMs and other polling materials. A demonstration of the drones was conducted in the presence of District Election Officer RV Karnan.

Polling is scheduled from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., with voters in line at 6 p.m. permitted to cast their votes.

Over 400,000 voters are eligible to participate in this by-election, prompted by the passing of the sitting MLA, Maganti Gopinath of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).

A total of 58 candidates are contesting, with the primary competition between the ruling Congress party and the opposing BRS and BJP.

The BRS has nominated Gopinath's wife, Sunitha, while Congress has fielded Naveen Yadav. The BJP has again nominated Lankala Deepak Reddy.

Hyderabad District Election Officer Karnan mentioned that live webcasting will be undertaken from all polling stations to maintain law and order during the election.

Out of the 407 polling stations, 226 have been designated as critical, necessitating the deployment of paramilitary forces.

Karnan confirmed that 2,060 polling personnel will be on duty, comprising 515 polling officers and an equal number of assistant polling officers.

Given the high number of candidates, Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) equipped with one Control Unit (CU), four Ballot Units (BUs), and one VVPAT will be available at each station. A total of 561 CUs, 2,394 BUs, and 595 VVPATs will be in operation.

Additionally, 40 engineers/technicians from Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) will be on standby to address any unforeseen circumstances.

The transportation of EVMs using GPS-fitted vehicles will be consistently monitored from the Control Room. Any faulty polling equipment will be replaced with functional reserve equipment as per ECI guidelines.

The constituency boasts 401,365 eligible voters, including 208,561 males, 192,779 females, and 25 others.

According to the DEO, there are 6,859 voters aged 18-19 and 2,134 voters over the age of 85.

A total of 103 absentee voters (aged over 85 and PwD voters) opted for postal ballots, with 101 having utilized this option.

Mobile deposit counters will be available at all polling stations for voters to safely deposit their mobile phones before casting their votes.

A three-tier security system has been implemented, with the Hyderabad Police Commissioner deploying forces to ensure adequate security at all polling locations, along with mobile squads to oversee law and order.

According to CEO Sudharshan Reddy, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) will be stationed at 68 polling locations.

Hyderabad's Joint Commissioner of Police Tafseer Iqbal confirmed the deployment of 1,761 police personnel.