'6.5 lakh Ansar, VDP members to be deployed at polling centres'

A total of 6.5 lakh Bangladesh Ansar and Village Defence Party (VDP) members will be deployed at polling centres nationwide to meet election-related challenges in the current context, Ansar and VDP Director General Maj Gen Abdul Motaleb Sazzad Mahmud said today.

Of them, 1.8 lakh new Ansar members have already been trained and prepared, he said during the closing ceremony of the General Ansar Refresher Training-2025 at Ansar Academy in Gazipur this afternoon

"One Ansar member will be assigned to assist each presiding officer," he said, adding that the training focused on maintaining discipline inside polling stations, managing voter queues, and preventing irregularities or disorderly behaviour.

"In strengthening the role of upazila Ansars and in state functions, we are preparing 1.8 lakh new members. It has already been decided how many will be recruited in each district," he added.

He noted that in the past year, 1.5 lakh Ansar members were trained, another 3 lakh are being prepared, bringing the total deployment to 6.5 lakh personnel.

Ansar and VDP Additional Director General Brig Gen Fida Mahmud, Deputy Director General (Training) Md Rafiqul Islam, Academy Commandant Mohammad Nurul Absar, and other senior officials were present at the event.