Sarangarh-Bilaigarh. Collector and District Election Officer Dharmesh Kumar Sahu held a meeting of all Assistant Returning Officers and Nodal Officers to conduct peaceful and orderly voting in the district under Lok Sabha Elections 2024. He directed that along with basic facilities in the polling stations, arrangements for shade, drinking water etc. should be ensured for the voters in the premises. Arrangements for wheel chairs and volunteers should be made in polling centers for disabled and senior citizen voters. The Collector instructed the Health Department to remain alert on the day of voting and directed to keep health centers open, deploy doctors and other staff, make arrangements for ambulances and ensure availability of ORS and other medicines.
Taking a meeting regarding necessary preparations on the day of voting, the Collector gave necessary instructions to the SDM. He gave instructions to clean the polling stations and ensure electricity and furniture arrangements before the voting day. The Collector directed that if any complaint of EVM related malfunction is received in any polling station, the concerned sector officer should immediately replace the EVM. In polling stations where there are more voters, additional staff should be put on duty to ensure timely voting.
The Collector gave information regarding the venue and route regarding the arrangements of all the parties through Google Map. After this, in view of the current heat, the Collector directed as per the instructions of the Election Commission that apart from providing cold drinking water and polling stations, vacant school and Anganwadi buildings in the campus should be kept open and arrangements for chairs should also be made through Gram Panchayats. Go. The Collector has ensured timely reporting of voting percentage on the polling day, distribution of polling kits along with all the materials to the polling parties, providing food at concessional rates to the polling personnel, transportation of handicapped and disabled voters to the polling stations through Voter Rath. Necessary guidelines were also given regarding making arrangements for transportation of EVMs, installing GPS for tracking in vehicles carrying EVMs along with sector officers and making arrangements for the stay of central forces. He directed the Electricity Department not to stop unnecessary electricity supply on the voting day.
The Collector instructed the polling parties to put on duty the master trainers and other responsible officers and employees at the designated counters during the distribution of materials and during their return and to distribute the materials on time. He directed to provide last stage training to the polling parties, keep the Postal Ballot-EDC safe in the strong room and take care of security through CCTV. The Collector gave instructions to open strong rooms, get videography done while carrying EVMs and inform the representatives of political parties and ensure their presence. The Collector also gave instructions for better arrangements in Sangwari and Adarsh polling stations. In the said meeting, SDM Vasu Jain, Snigdha Tiwari, Upazila Election Officer Aniket Sahu, Project Director Harishankar Chauhan, ASP Kamleshwar Chandel, Deputy Collector Varsha Bansal, all the Assistant Returning Officers and Nodal Officers, Kamil Haq and other sector officers of the police were present.
