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Polling staff, EVMs & security personnel reach polling stations in upper reaches
Doda district election officer Harvinder Singh said, “The exercise had been initiated well in time and today we sent around 250 polling staff and security personnel to the upper reaches of Gai in Dessa. The motorable road is up to Gai and then 7 km of steep ascent has to be covered either on foot or mules.”
The election authorities on Thursday stated that the polling staff, electronic voting machines and security personnel have been ferried to hilly and inaccessible areas of Doda, Ramban, Kishtwar, Kathua and Udhampur district to ensure hassle free voting on Friday.
Doda district election officer Harvinder Singh said, “The exercise had been initiated well in time and today we sent around 250 polling staff and security personnel to the upper reaches of Gai in Dessa. The motorable road is up to Gai and then 7 km of steep ascent has to be covered either on foot or mules.”
“We have set up polling stations, each at a distance of 2 kms, in the upper in order to make stations accessible to the voters,” said Singh.
“The terrain is hilly and undulating. Therefore, we have deployed physically fit staff,” he added.
Amid rains the polling staff carried the EVMs and allied equipments wrapped in polythene.
“While men and material have reached polling stations to facilitate voting tomorrow, we also have kept one palanquin each on every polling station for elderly citizens to bring them to polling stations,” he added.
Second group of 31 polling parties was also dispatched to far off polling stations in the adjoining Kishtwar district on Wednesday.
The polling teams left amid tight security and other logistical arrangements under the close supervision of Kishtwar district election officer Dr Devansh Yadav.
Three out of eight teams (consisting of 17 polling staff members and 23 police personnel) were airlifted in the choppers by IAF and Indian Army to far flung areas of Machail.
Earlier, 43 polling parties were dispatched to the far-flung areas to facilitate PwD and home voting.
A senior official said, “We have directed the polling staff perform their assigned duties diligently and conduct free, fair and transparent elections.”
Polling staff along with EVMs have also been dispatched to hilly areas of Bani in Kathua.
After Udhampur, Jammu parliamentary constituency will go to polls on April 26 followed by Anantnag-Rajouri constituency on May 7, Srinagar on May 13 and Baramulla on May 20. The counting of votes will be held on June 4.
