A review meeting on preparations for the forthcoming panchayat elections was held on Friday with all Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) and Block Development Officers (BDOs) to ensure smooth conduct of the electoral process.
District Election Officer Anupam Kashyap chaired the meeting through a video conference and conducted a detailed review of arrangements required for peaceful, transparent and orderly elections.
Kashyap directed the panchayat secretaries concerned to oversee arrangements for the accommodation and meals of polling parties. He also instructed officials to ensure the availability of vehicles and buses at the block level for the movement of polling teams.
Discussions during the meeting focused on providing adequate lodging and food facilities for polling personnel, porters and other staff engaged in election duty. Instructions were also issued regarding timely payment to employees deployed for election work and the prompt settlement of related bills.
To maintain law and order during the elections, the district administration directed the SDMs (civil) concerned to take all necessary measures. Officials were also asked to closely monitor the election expenditure of zila parishad candidates through the candidate expenditure reporting system (CERS).
Special emphasis was placed on strengthening surveillance arrangements at sensitive and hypersensitive polling and counting centres. Instructions were issued for the installation of CCTV cameras and webcasting facilities, while making the maximum use of the existing infrastructure.
