Delhi's GB Nagar declares paid holiday on April 26 for voting

The DM has urged all employers to adhere to the orders and warned them that legal action will be initiated in case of a violation.

Gautam Budh Nagar chief electoral officer and district magistrate Manish Kumar Verma on Tuesday declared a paid holiday on April 26 for all employees working in the public and private sector and said the leave would enable everyone to vote in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Polling day preparations under way at the flower market in Sector 88, Noida, on Tuesday. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

The DM has urged all employers to adhere to the orders and warned them that legal action under Section 135B of the Representation of People Act, 1951, will be initiated in case of a violation.

Verma said, “The Election Commission guidelines have been issued as per which, a paid holiday has to be granted to all eligible employees on the day of polling in the district. As per the order, all eligible employees, including those working in government as well as private sector, business, commercial or industrial sectors, who are registered voters of Gautam Budh Nagar constituency, are entitled to a paid holiday on polling day.”

The Gautam Budh Nagar administration on Tuesday kick-started the process of commissioning EVMs and voter verifiable paper audit trial (VVPAT) machines at the Flower Market in Noida’s Phase 2, where counting of votes will be conducted on June 4, officials informed.

The process of commissioning of EVMs and VVPAT machines, includes preparing the machines for polling after testing and verifications. It commenced in the presence of the special election observers, expenditure observers and political party candidates and their representatives.

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The district administration, on Monday, concluded the process of shifting the EVMs and VVPAT machines from Surajpur Collectorate to Flower Market.

“The commissioning of EVMs and VVPAT machines has commenced at the Flower Market (Phool Mandi). The process is a part of Election Commission guidelines that directs for mandatory checks of EVMs and VVPAT machines,” said Verma.

“All the EVMs and VVPATs are being thoroughly checked to ensure their flawless functionality after which these will be dispatched to the polling booths that have been set up across the district,” said Verma.

The total number of machines to be used is yet to be announced by the administration.

A total of 1,852 polling booths have been established across the district including 747 developed in Noida, 707 in Dadri and 398 in Jewar and there are as many as 18,82,177 registered voters in Gautam Budh Nagar