Tirupati: Andhra Pradesh Director General of Police Harish Kumar Gupta, a 1992-batch IPS officer of the Andhra Pradesh cadre, has directed senior police officials to strengthen security preparations ahead of the forthcoming local body elections, emphasising advance resource mobilisation, surveillance of sensitive areas and preventive action against potential troublemakers.
Addressing a meeting with Superintendents of Police from the Rayalaseema range on Friday, October 9, the DGP instructed officers to monitor the movement of liquor, cash, gifts and weapons within their jurisdictions to prevent election-related violations and disturbances.
He also called for greater use of technology and coordinated policing to support the peaceful and impartial conduct of the elections.
DGP Calls for Surveillance in Sensitive Villages
Gupta directed police officials to identify vulnerable villages and sensitive polling booths and intensify monitoring in areas considered prone to disturbances.
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The key instructions included:
- Advance security planning: Mobilise personnel and other resources before the election notification.
- Monitoring sensitive locations: Strengthen surveillance in villages and polling booths identified as vulnerable.
- Preventive action: Take lawful preventive measures against suspected troublemakers and
- Checks on illegal movement: Monitor the transportation of liquor, cash, gifts and weapons during the election period.
The DGP stressed that police officials should identify potential trouble spots in advance rather than wait for incidents to occur.
Drones, CCTV and Command Centres to Strengthen Monitoring
The DGP called for the wider use of technology to monitor sensitive areas and respond to emerging law-and-order situations.
Police officials were instructed to make effective use of:
- Drone cameras for surveillance.
- CCTV networks to monitor vulnerable locations.
- Command and control systems for coordinating security operations.
These measures form part of the preparations for maintaining law and order during the local body election process.
Village-Level Outreach and Search Operations
Gupta also asked officers to conduct Palle Nidra visits, organise Grama Sabha meetings and carry out cordon-and-search operations in sensitive villages and wards wherever required.
The measures are intended to help police gather local information, assess security concerns and identify individuals or activities that could pose a threat to public order.
He directed senior officers to remain alert to local conditions and ensure that preventive measures were implemented within their respective jurisdictions.
Senior Police Officers Attend Rayalaseema Review Meeting
The meeting was attended by Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Madhusudhan Reddy, Inspector-General of Police Semushi Bajpayee of the Anantapur range, and Inspector-General of Police Koya Praveen of the Kurnool range.
Other officers present included Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Kurnool, Vikrant Patil, and the Superintendents of Police of Tirupati, Annamayya, Chittoor, Kadapa, Anantapur and Sri Sathya Sai districts.
The review focused on advance preparation, surveillance and coordination among police units to support the peaceful conduct of the forthcoming local body elections.
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