Kathmandu । The government has prepared to establish 10,926 polling stations across the country for the House of Representatives election scheduled for February 21. The number was determined on the basis of reports from the Election Commission, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and national security agencies, taking into account the arrangements of previous elections and the updated number of voters. Officials say this remains a preliminary estimate and may undergo minor adjustments as preparations continue. Home Ministry spokesperson Anand Kafle noted that discussions have been held in phases to finalize around 10,923 polling stations, though slight fluctuations are still expected.
Security assessments carried out by the agencies have categorized all polling stations into general, sensitive, and highly sensitive clusters. Of the total, 3,518 have been placed in the highly sensitive category, prompting authorities to plan additional security deployment in those areas. Likewise, 4,529 stations fall under the sensitive category, while 2,879 have been listed as general. Authorities say districts in the Tarai region make up a large share of the sensitive and highly sensitive locations due to existing security challenges. Discussions are ongoing regarding the specific modality of security deployment for each category, and a final decision is yet to be taken.
In parallel with polling station preparation, the government is also working to set up 22,304 individual polling centers for election day. Although this figure is yet to be finalized, internal assessments show that 7,150 of these centers are likely to be classified as highly sensitive, with an additional 9,320 listed as sensitive. The remaining 5,834 centers are expected to be categorized as general. These classifications, authorities say, are being developed to reflect the varying degrees of security threats across regions.
To secure the polling process, a multi-layered security plan has been drafted. Temporary police personnel, Nepal Police, and intelligence units will be positioned in the innermost circle of polling stations. The Armed Police Force will be deployed in the middle layer, while the Nepal Army will be mobilized in the outermost security ring. The President has already approved the deployment of the Army. Preparations for the recruitment of temporary police have neared completion, with more than 132,000 personnel expected to be hired. They will serve for 40 days under the title of Election Security Police and will receive the same salary and service conditions as a police constable.
Officials report that overall security sensitivity has heightened ahead of the election. They cite the increasingly complex nature of contemporary security challenges, the growing number of voters, the presence of a large number of escaped prisoners, and the significant volume of missing weapons as major concerns. During the Gen-Z movement on 23 and 24 Bhadra, more than 14,000 prisoners escaped after vandalizing and burning prison facilities, and over 5,000 of them remain at large. In the same unrest, 1,271 weapons belonging to the police were looted, nearly half of which are still missing. Authorities estimate that around 98,000 live rounds have also disappeared. The continued presence of escaped prisoners and unaccounted weapons, officials say, poses a serious threat to election security and has heavily influenced the classification of polling stations and centers.
