KATHMANDU: Nepal deployed thousands of troops around the country on Wednesday (Feb 4) to boost security ahead of the first elections since last year’s deadly protests toppled the previous government.
In total, 300,000 security personnel and temporary election police were sent out in the lead-up to the Mar 5 vote, an increase from previous polls.
“We have deployed more security personnel in this election to make security arrangements more effective and to ensure the upcoming election is fair and secure,” Ananda Kafle, the spokesman for the Ministry of Home Affairs, told AFP.
“Security-wise, we are intact,” said Kafle.
An interim government has been running the country since anti-corruption protests in September led to the resignation of veteran Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.
Seventy-seven people were killed and thousands of buildings, including government properties, parliament and courts, were torched or damaged in one of the most violent episodes of unrest in Nepal in recent years.
Nearly 80,000 of the total deployed are army troops, Nepal’s Army spokesperson Raja Ram Basnet told AFP.
Tens of thousands of young Nepalis have also applied for temporary policing jobs to help with logistical tasks such as managing queues at polling stations.
The army will primarily conduct aerial patrols, oversee ballot box transportation and provide security during vote counting.
Almost two-thirds of Nepal’s population of around 30 million people will be eligible to vote next month in polls that will determine the make-up of the country’s parliament and which party can form a government.
Nepal’s Election Commission has said it is ready to hold the election as planned despite concerns over weather conditions in high-altitude Himalayan regions.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/nepal-elections-deploy-troops-security-5906871
