00:00 The voting for the Phase 1 of the Chhattisgarh Assembly election has begun in the state.
00:06 Despite special security arrangements made in the state, as certain areas of the state
00:10 have a Naxal impact, a CRPF jawan was wounded in an IED explosion set off by Naxals in Sukma
00:15 district of Chhattisgarh soon after the polling began.
00:19 The jawan, who belonged to the Cobra 206 battalion of the CRPF, was on election duty in the Tondamarka
00:25 area when the blast occurred, said Sukma Superintendent of Police Kiran Chavan.
00:29 The jawan has been identified as Shrikant and he is safe now after receiving first aid.
00:34 The incident happened when Cobra 206 and CRPF personnel from Camp Tondamarka were on their
00:39 way to Elma Gunda village on an area domination operation.
00:43 During patrolling, the jawan stepped on an IED planted by Naxals and injured his leg.
00:48 This is the second incident of an IED blast in Chhattisgarh in two days.
00:51 On Monday, a BSF constable and two polling team members were wounded in a pressure IED
00:55 blast in Kanket.
00:57 The injured constable was identified as Prakash Chann, who sustained injuries to his legs
01:01 and was rushed to Chhotepethia for treatment.
01:04 Out of the 20 seats that are polling in the first phase, 12 are from Bastar division,
01:08 which is affected by Naxal violence.
01:09 The polling is also taking place in other Naxal-hit districts such as Bastar, Dantewada,
01:14 Kanket, Kabirdham and Rajnandgaon.
01:17 To ensure free and fair elections in the state, Central Armed Police forces have been deployed
01:21 to assist the local police force in the state.
01:23 Naxal activities will be monitored through drones and helicopters.
01:26 Bomb disposal team and a dog squad will also be roped in, according to the police.
01:30 Around 60,000 security personnel, 40,000 of them belonging to the CAPF and 20,000 from
01:35 the state police have been deployed to the smooth conductive polls in Bastar division,
01:39 which has 12 assembly segments.
01:41 Members of the elite anti-Naxal unit, COBRA and women commandos are also a part of the
01:46 security apparatus, the police said.
01:47 Due to security reasons, 149 polling stations in five assembly constituencies of the division
01:52 have been shifted to the nearest police station and security camps.
01:56 Polling to the 90-member state assembly will be held in two phases on November 7 and 17.
02:00 For more information, visit www.cbc.gov/covid19.
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