Agartala, April 10 (NationPress) In a significant move to guarantee the orderly execution of the elections for the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) on April 12, over 13,500 security personnel from both central and state forces will be mobilized, according to senior officials on Friday.

The TTAADC, which is comprised of 30 members—28 elected representatives and 2 members appointed by the state government—oversees nearly 70% of Tripura's total area of 10,491 square kilometers, establishing it as a crucial constitutional entity.

Tripura's Director General of Police (DGP) Anurag announced that the Central government has dispatched 24 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), totaling around 1,500 personnel, at the last minute for election duties.

He detailed that of these 24 CAPF companies, 12 are from the Border Security Force (BSF), 10 from the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), and 2 from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). By Saturday, these forces will be strategically positioned across all 28 TTAADC constituencies.

Furthermore, an additional 12,000 personnel from the Tripura State Rifles (TSR) and the state police will ensure law and order during the elections.

The DGP noted that out of 1,257 polling stations, 311 are considered highly critical, 693 as vulnerable, and 253 as normal. He assured that robust security measures are in place to conduct the elections in a free, fair, and peaceful manner.

DGP Anurag encouraged voters to participate without fear and to cooperate with the authorities to maintain the tradition of peaceful elections in the state.

According to State Election Commission (SEC) Secretary Anurag Sen, 9,62,697 voters, mostly from tribal communities, are eligible to vote in the upcoming elections, which include 4,80,666 women voters.

This electoral event sees participation from three national parties—the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Front, and the Congress—alongside two regional parties, the Tipra Motha Party (TMP) and the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT), in addition to several local parties and Independent candidates.

A total of 173 candidates are contesting across the 28 Assembly seats. The SEC officials indicated that the BJP, TMP, and the Left Front have candidates in all 28 seats, the Congress in 27 seats, and the IPFT in 24 seats.

Moreover, 38 Independent candidates and nominees from smaller parties will also participate in the elections.

Interestingly, the BJP's two tribal-based allies—TMP and IPFT—are contesting separately due to the failure to form an electoral alliance for the TTAADC elections.

The BJP, led by Chief Minister Manik Saha and state party President Rajib Bhattacharjee, the Left Front led by CPI-M Politburo member and Leader of Opposition Jitendra Chaudhury, along with former Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, the Congress led by Congress Working Committee member and former Minister Sudip Roy Barman, and the TMP led by party Chief Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma have all engaged in extensive campaigns to secure control of the council.

The TMP, allied with the BJP since 2021, has been managing this strategically important council, viewed as the second most essential constitutional body in the state after the Tripura Assembly.

Established under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution in June 1985, the TTAADC aims to enhance the socio-economic development of tribal communities, which have historically played a pivotal role in the political dynamics of Tripura.

Currently, tribal communities represent nearly one-third of Tripura's population of 4.2 million.