Election staff airlifted to remote Salwa Judum relief camp

“A helicopter has been pressed into service to ferry the staff to Jagargunda to prepare photo identity cards for all eligible voters staying in the relief camp. The process is to be completed by tomorrow,” a spokesman of the state electoral office said.

23 other ‘Salwa Judum’ relief camps are spread over in Dantewada and Bijapur districts, where 56,675 tribals have taken shelter following threats from Maoist rebels. The Jagargunda relief camp, unlike the other ‘Salwa Judum’ camps, is a Maoist hotbed and not easily accessible. It is the only camp where even food supplies have to be airlifted by helicopters due to security reasons. This year, the administration also had to make a helicopter available to airlift school children, taking them to their public examination centres.

Photo identity cards of people staying in other relief camps are also being prepared in full swing. Once this process is completed, election authorities will consider locations - depending on security issues­ — where polling stations can be set up so that the inmates of 23 relief camps can exercise their franchise.