Chief of Army Staff Ashokraj Sigdel has directed troops to manage election security effectively and without lapses.

During inspections of the Eastern Division Headquarters in Koshi and the Mid-Eastern Division Headquarters in Madhesh, Sigdel instructed units to discharge their election duties in a “flawless manner”.

Voting is scheduled to take place across the country in a single phase on March 5.

Around 80,000 army personnel have been deployed in the field. As per the integrated election security plan approved by the Central Security Committee, the army has been assigned responsibility for the outer security ring.

Under the plan, the army will also assist the Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force in transporting ballot boxes to counting centres after polling.

Temporary bases have been set up in all 165 constituencies, with troops stationed in the outer perimeter of polling centres. The army has been positioned to reach any site within 20 minutes in case of anti-election activities or untoward incidents.

In total, around 71,000 Nepal Police personnel, about 35,000 Armed Police Force personnel and 149,000 temporary election police have been deployed for security.

Sigdel said ensuring a free and fearless election is a national responsibility and instructed personnel to remain mindful of that duty.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Sushila Karki received briefings from the home and defence ministries as well as the chiefs of four security agencies on election preparedness. The same day, discussions were held at the Central Security Committee and the Election Commission on election management and security.

A day later, Sigdel visited the Eastern and Mid-Eastern Division headquarters to review the security situation and issue directives.

In a statement, the Nepali Army said the army chief had also taken stock of the overall situation in the areas under the divisions’ jurisdiction and directed units to carry out their assigned responsibilities efficiently.