Polling is underway at Himachal Pradesh’s highest-altitude polling station, set up at Government Primary School Comic in the remote Spiti Valley of Lahaul-Spiti district. The polling booth is located at an elevation of 4,587 metres above sea level.
District Election Officer (Panchayat) and Additional District Magistrate Kaza, Shikha, said the polling station falls under Langza Gram Panchayat in the Kaza development block and is the highest polling booth in the state.
In a significant step towards women-led election management, the administration has deployed all-women polling teams and women security personnel at selected polling stations in the region. Five wards of Lara Panchayat and three wards of Langza Panchayat are being managed entirely by women staff during the polling process.
A total of 10 women polling teams have been constituted for the elections. Of these, eight teams have been assigned active election duty at polling stations, while two teams have been kept in reserve to handle emergencies or additional requirements.
Election officials said special logistical arrangements were made to ensure smooth conduct of polling in the high-altitude and weather-sensitive terrain of Spiti Valley. Polling personnel travelled through difficult mountainous routes and extreme climatic conditions to reach the remote booths.
The initiative is being seen as a major effort by the district administration to encourage women’s participation in electoral management while ensuring free and fair polling in remote tribal areas.
