Agartala: A slew of special initiatives have been undertaken by the office of Chief Electoral Officer Tripura to ensure that simultaneous polls in Ramnagar assembly constituency are conducted sans any hassle.
Electors in the area are slated to cast votes twice on April 19 for both elections to the assembly as well as the parliamentary seat. The by-polls were necessitated owing to the sudden demise of BJP MLA Surajit Datta.
An official privy to the guidelines disclosed that multi-coloured ballot papers and separate polling compartments will be introduced specifically for the Ramnagar assembly constituency.
The CEO’s office has issued comprehensive guidelines for voters in this regard. Polling personnel assigned to the constituency are receiving thorough training to effectively manage the situation. Additional polling personnel will be provided for this constituency due to the dual voting requirement. Two separate compartments with written instructions will be set up in the polling stations.
Regarding security measures, the official stated that a special task force of Central Armed Paramilitary Forces (CAPF) will be deployed to oversee the bordering areas.
Additional measures such as CCTV and webcasting would be in place to prevent security lapses.
Moreover, voters above 85 years of age and persons with disabilities (PwD) have applied for home voting facility. More than 5,000 eligible voters in the West Tripura constituency have applied for this facility. Additionally, service voters can cast their votes through the new EPDS mechanism, benefiting around 7,000 to 8,000 service voters, including Tripura State Rifles Jawans deployed outside the state.
Assured minimum facilities like sheds, drinking and electricity will be arranged in all polling stations. The duration of voting is also lengthy in Tripura given the past experience of high turnout.
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