390 arms, 598 rounds of ammunition recovered in Bengal during raids since March 15: EC

The Election Commission on Tuesday said a total of 390 arms and 598 rounds of ammunition have been recovered during raids for over a month in West Bengal, where the second and final phase of assembly polls will take place on April 29. Authorities have also taken steps to regulate licensed arms, with 41,706 out of 52,869 licensed weapons deposited so far, an EC official said. Explosives weighing over 222.57 kg were also seized during the raids that commenced on March 15 across the state, he said. ''A total of 390 arms and weapons have been seized till now along with 1,348 crude bombs,'' he said. In a bid to curb inducements to voters, enforcement agencies have carried out extensive seizures valued at Rs 532.88 crore – including cash, liquor, drugs and narcotics, and freebies – since February 26, the official said. A multi-layered security grid has been established across poll-bound areas, with intensified surveillance and preventive action, he said. In order to remove unauthorised political advertisements and defacement of public and private properties, the Commission said over 23.49 lakh instances of defacement have been cleared across the state. The first phase of elections to the 294-member West Bengal assembly was held on April 23, while the second phase will take place on April 29. Votes will be counted on May 4.

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