All set for Lok Sabha polls: Dana Kishore

Hyderabad: Hyderabad District Election Officer (DEO), GHMC Dana Kishore speaking to the media on Tuesday said that all arrangements have been made for the forthcoming 11th Lok Sabha elections. He also said 35,000 officials and staff were directly and indirectly involved in the election process.

Basing on the number of polling stations and including 10% Reserve personnel, totally 4378 Presiding Officers, 4378 Assistant Presiding Officers, 8756 Other Presiding Officers and 519 Micro Observers have been drafted.

DEO also said Web Casting will be taken up in 1,000 sensitive polling stations. About 2,400 volunteers are registered to attend the duty. In other Polling Stations Static recording cameras or Micro Observers will be arranged for close monitoring of poll events.

Basing on the 3976 Polling stations, 6952 Ballet Units and 4780 Control Units and 4980 VVPATs have been allotted to the 14 Assembly Segments of two Parliament Constituencies of Hyderabad district. Randomization of 158 VVPATs is taken up for allotment of additional VVPATs, 88 to Hyderabad Parliament Constituency and 70 VVPATs to Secunderabad Parliament Constituency.

Returning Officers and Assistant Returning Officers are preparing Marked Copies of Photo Electoral Rolls duly marking Postal Ballot and Election duty Certificate against the polling personnel to whom the Postal Ballot and Election duty certificate is issued.

Total applications in form-12 and 12A received are 17581, Total applications in Form-12/12A sent to Returning Officers of Telangana State are 16504, total form 12 sent to other States are 619 and total applications returned by Returning Officers due to no EPIC or vote are 458.

Postal Ballot facilitation centres are being opened at 14 distribution centres with good public addressing system and to collect the Postal Ballots in a sealed trunk Box. Returning Officers will obtain reports from the Sectoral Officers regarding the requirement of Assured Minimum Facilities to be arranged. 300 butter-milk packets at each Polling Station shall be arranged by Robin Hood Army.

The District Medical Officer, Hyderabad will ensure opening of First Aid Centre at all Disability Resource Centres (DRC) with one Doctor and two nurses along with adequate number of ORS packets, important life-saving medicines and one Ambulance round the clock.

The Chief Engineer, GHMC & Nodal Officer Welfare Committee is arranging tents for providing shade to the voters and personnel drafted at the polling stations in consultation with the Returning Officers and Sectoral officer.

The Chief Electoral Officer, Hyderabad has issued instructions for arranging model polling station and one women managed polling station per each Assembly Segment. Accordingly, the Returning Officers are arranging preparation of Modal Polling stations and the Nodal Officer, Manpower Management has arranging drafting of Women personnel exclusively to manage a Women Managed Polling Stating in each Assembly Segment.

One fire engine and fire fighting appliances will be arranged at the DRC centres. The Managing Director, CPDCL has been addressed to provide uninterrupted power supply on Wednesday and Thursday and also till May 27.

The Returning Officers, Nodal Off

The Flying Squad Teams and Static Surveillance Teams will intensify their activity to curb the distribution of money, liquor and gifts to the voters in the last three days of election.

The Chief Public Relation Officer (CPRO), GHMC will liaison with all the MCMC committee members and ensuring that all the paid news items are properly accounted by the contesting candidates and their political parties.

The Returning Officers and the Assistant Returning Officers will closely monitor the distribution of EPICs and Photo voter slips only to the voters concerned.

The ASD (Absent, Shifted, Dead/Duplicate) lists will be invariably prepared basing on the undistributed Photo Voters Slips and also they will be handed over to the concerned Returning Officers for onward supply to the Presiding Officer along with polling material. Vehicles and wheel chairs are provided for the PwD voters at all the polling stations.

The Election Commission of India has not accepted the proposals for creation of 3 Auxiliary Polling Stations hence the number of polling stations in Hyderabad district remained only 3976.