Monday, 14 February 2022 | PNS | Dehradun

All necessary preparations have been made to ensure free and fair Polling to be held today in the state’s assembly elections. The state’s chief electoral officer (CEO) Sowjanya informed the media about the various steps taken and measures put in place to facilitate polling as per the guidelines of the Election Commission of India. She informed that there are a total of 11,697 polling booths in the state. Polling will be allowed from 8 AM to 6 PM. Considering Covid-19, hand sanitisers and gloves will be made available in all the polling booths. There are a total of 13,910 presiding officers, 1,069 micro observers and 5,136 women personnel among the total work force of 79,315 deployed for polling across the state. A total of 36,095 security personnel have been deployed and in addition to these there are 23 companies of Provincial Armed Constabulary and 114 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF). When it comes to the number of vehicles deployed for facilitating the process, 9,068 light vehicles, 33,788 heavy vehicles along with 720 trucks and mini trucks have been deployed across the state. The CEO further informed that out of the 1,40,358 postal ballots issued, 27,108 had been received back till date. Further, out of the 16,858 postal ballots for persons with disabilities and eligible senior citizens, 15,940 had been received.

When it comes to the action taken for violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) a total of 1,689 FIRs had been lodged till date. These include 150 FIRs pertaining to MCC violation, 192 related to Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and 1,103 pertaining to excise. Regarding seizures, she informed that Rs 4.26 crore cash had been seized along with narcotics valued at Rs 5.33 crore, liquor valued at Rs 4.52 crore. The total seizures made during this assembly election till date amount to Rs 18.42 crore. Apart from this the deposition of licensed arms is 86 per cent, she added.A holiday has already been declared on polling day in government and non-government offices, educational institutions, banks, commercial establishments and shops.

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