Agartala, March 27: Tripura will go to the Lok Sabha elections on April 23 with fewer number of security personnel, compared to the last parliamentary and Assembly elections.

Disclosing this, chief secretary V. Shashi Prakash said the Union home ministry had agreed to sanction only 30 companies of central paramilitary forces for conducting the polls as against the state government’s demand for 100 companies.

“We asked for 100 companies but the ministry of home affairs has agreed to sanction only 30. Union home secretary Madhukar Gupta himself has requested us to manage with the forces made available in view of the decline in emergency over the past few years in the state,” the chief secretary said.

Shashi Prakash did not make any direct comment on the level of forces sanctioned by the Union home ministry or whether this level of force would be adequate to conduct the polls safely and smoothly.

He, however, said at the time of the last Lok Sabha polls in 2004, a larger force had been sanctioned while during the Assembly polls, 200 companies of central paramilitary forces were sanctioned last year.

“We do have a total deployment of about 40,000 security personnel already, including the CRPF, BSF and Assam Rifles but all of them cannot be deployed for elections. But we hope to ensure a peaceful and fair election,” Shashi Prakash said.

He, however, added that the administration would face problems if some companies of the Tripura State Rifles were moved out for deployment in other states. The chief secretary said precautionary measures were being taken by the administration to ensure a peaceful election.

“We have already imposed prohibitory orders along the entire length of the 856km border with Bangladesh and the BSF has been instructed to go for stricter vigil so that no infiltration takes place and a total stop is put to trans-border movement of militants,” Shashi Prakash said.

On the other hand, 35 senior officials of Tripura have been nominated by the Election Commission to act as observers in other states during the Lok Sabha elections.

Official sources said this is the first time so many officials have been nominated for poll duty.

“It may have some effect on the general administrative work but there is no alternative either and we will have to manage”, a source said.