Shimla, Mar 9 (PTI) The Himachal Pradesh Police Headquarters has provided 490 personnel to the Shimla police to maintain law and order during the state assembly's budget session beginning on Monday, an official statement said.

The session will commence with Governor Shiv Pratap Shula's address, while Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu will present his third budget on March 17, which will be put to vote on March 26.

Of the 490 personnel, 447 are regular police staff, 17 are from the Special Security Unit (SSU), and 26 are additional officers from the Quick Response Teams of the 1st and 5th Indian Reserve Battalion, the statement said.

Additional force will be provided as needed while ensuring a balanced response across the state to meet the overall law enforcement requirements, read the statement.

During the 2024 budget session, 494 police personnel of different ranks were provided by the Police Headquarters to the Shimla superintendent of police for law and order duty. Later, because of the agitation during the session, an additional 200 personnel were deployed.

The Police Headquarters also advised the Shimla police to use its resources more efficiently, according to the statement. PTI/COR RHL

Law and order deployments strengthen assembly security during the budget session, with additional personnel and reserve units on standby. Provision of additional police personnel to maintain law and order is announced for the Shimla assembly's budget session, with 490 officers assigned to bolster security. The augmentation includes regular police staff, Special Security Unit personnel, and officers from Quick Response Teams of Indian Reserve Battalions, with further reinforcements to be provided as operational needs arise while preserving balanced statewide force distribution; Police Headquarters also instructed efficient utilisation of local resources and noted prior session deployments and contingency escalation.