The Election Commission (EC) on Thursday reviewed the preparedness for the first phase of elections starting on October 12.

The elections would be conducted in 49 Assembly constituencies spread over 10 districts of eastern Bihar.

Additional chief electoral officer (ACEO) R. Laxmanan said the commission conducted the review at a meeting with general observers, police observers and expenditure observers through video-conferencing. "The observers expressed satisfaction over the preparations," he added.

The EC also held separate meetings with chief secretaries and directors-general of police (DGPs) of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bengal in view of the elections. The ACEO said issues related to the crucial elections in Bihar were discussed at the meeting. Since several districts going to polls in the first phase were affected by Left wing extremism, coordination among the officials of these states was required, he added.

Meanwhile, the EC has decided to press drones (unmanned aircraft) into service to keep surveillance on the activities of the Maoists during the first poll phase. Jamui, Nawada, Lakhisarai, Munger and Banka have been identified as the worst Maoist-hit districts going to polls on October 12.

Laxmanan said helicopters were used in the past for surveillance on the Maoists. "But drones would be used this time, probably for the first time," he told The Telegraph.

He, however, refused to share operational details about the use of drones. He also declined to provide the number of central paramilitary force (CPMF) companies drafted for the first phase. "We can only say that there would be cent per cent deployment of the central forces at all polling booths," he said.

To a query, the ACEO said leaders generally adhered to the model code of conduct and when the commission found certain violations in their speeches, notices were served upon them. He cited examples of Lalu Prasad, Amit Shah and Sushil Kumar Modi to support his claim.

On Thursday, the officials seized a little over Rs 24 lakh unaccounted cash from different parts of the state. While Rs 15.34 lakh was recovered by officials in East Champaran, the operations in Vaishali yielded Rs 6.8 lakh. In addition, Rs 1.66 lakh was seized from Buxar. Almost 5.4 lakh litres of illicit liquor has been confiscated by the excise and prohibition department officials. The liquor was being stocked for distribution before polling days. So far, the election office has registered 265 FIRs for violation of the Excise and Prohibition Act.

"During the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Rs 6 crore and around 5.78 lakh litres of illicit liquor were confiscated. On the law and order front, around 300 explosives and 800 and odd illegal weapons were seized," said Laxmanan.

Over 6.6 crore voters, including around 3.1 crore women voters, are eligible to cast their votes at the 62,779 polling stations across the state. Around 1,200 of these polling booths in certain areas of Bhagalpur, Khagaria, Vaishali, Darbhanga and Supaul districts apart from others fall in the riverine belt of the state.