Rajasthan Assembly By-Election-2024, all preparations for voting completed, polling parties reached their centers

Voting will begin from 7 am on Wednesday and will continue till 6 pm during the by-elections in 7 assembly constituencies in Rajasthan. For this, returning officers and district election officers have completed all preparations till the polling stations. Tight security arrangements have also been made in all the 7 assembly constituencies for free, fair, safe, fear-free and inducement-free voting.

Chief Electoral Officer Shri Naveen Mahajan reviewed the preparations for the by-elections with state and district level officials of the district administration and police through a video conference on Tuesday evening.and gave necessary instructions. In the meeting, smooth voting process, eco-friendly electoral system, better voting percentage were discussed in all the 7 assembly constituencies. During this, the action plan to deal with the possibility of influencing the elections was discussed in detail, keeping special focus on sensitive polling stations.गया।

Inspector General of Police Vigilance Shri Prafulla Kumar, Inspector General of Police ATS Shri Hemant Kumar Sharma, Inspector General of Police Law and Order were present in the meeting. Shri Anil Kumar Tank, Commissioner of the Excise Department of the State Government, Shri Shivprasad Nakate and State Level Nodal Officer of the Income Tax Department of the Government of India, Shri SR Jagdale were present. District level nodal officers of Excise, Income Tax departments and police were also present in the meeting.

Shri Mahajan said in the review meeting that during the by-elections, there is a need to take extra precautions at sensitive polling stations along with smooth conduct of the electoral process in all the assembly constituencies. He took detailed information about the well-organized departure and arrival of all polling parties and replacement of EVM-VVPAT machines in case of technical glitches during the mock poll and actual polling.

Shri Mahajan said that in view of the sensitivity of the elections, out of total 1,915 polling centers in all the 7 assembly constituencies, arrangements for live webcasting are being made in 1,170 centers keeping in mind the secrecy of voting.In some polling complexes, where there are 3 or more polling stations, cameras have also been installed outside the booth. This will also keep an eye on the queue of voters and the law and order situation. To make this activity more meaningful, he stressed on real-time analysis of webcast live feed and arranging positive action on it. He directed the local authorities for this Instructed to effectively implement Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) and take prompt corrective action as per requirement.

Shri Mahajan said that there is a need to be more strict in the process of arresting illegal cash, liquor, narcotics and free distribution items on the voting day.He directed the State Police, Excise and Income Tax officials, other enforcement agencies including Flying Squads (FS) and Static Surveillance Teams (SST) to work more actively and vigilantly in order to prevent the elections from being influenced.उन्होंने कहा कि दूसरे राज्यों के साथ सीमावर्ती क्षेत्रों और चुनाव आचार संहिता के प्रभाव वाले जिलों के पड़ोसी जिलों के साथ लगे नाकों पर अधिक सतर्कता बरती जाए, ताकि चुनाव के संचालन में किसी बाहरी व्यवधान को रोका जा सके।

He said that more vigilance should be exercised at the border areas with other states and the checkpoints adjacent to the districts under the influence of the Election Code of Conduct, so that any external interference in the conduct of elections can be prevented.

The Chief Electoral Officer directed the Election Commission of India on behalf of the District Election Officers and Returning Officers to ensure timely sending of the reports sent during the voting and in the next days after the voting dayGiving instructions to focus on increasing the voting percentage (voter turn out), he said that if the number of voters at a polling booth is less in the live webcast feed, then in this situation voters should be encouraged to vote through sweep activities. Immediate efforts should be made to encourage.

State Inspector General of Police Vigilance Shri Prafulla Kumar and Inspector General of Police Law and Order and State Police Nodal Officer Shri Anil Kumar Tank directed the District Superintendents of Police to ensure better coordination between voters, polling parties and monitoring officers at the polling stations during voting. He said that the role of police and central security forces is to be allies of the voters, hence the security personnel deployed in the field should be directed to behave better.Do not allow polling to be disrupted at the polling station under any circumstances. Also, in case of any disruption in the voting process or law and order, take strict action if necessary. Also take strict and effective action to stop distribution of illegal cash, liquor or free distribution items.

The Chief Electoral Officer said that during the assembly by-elections in the state, the voting process was prepared to make it eco-friendly.Make sure to follow the action plan completely. In this sequence, paper packets and plates for food and snacks will be distributed at polling stations and EVM collection centers.Instead of plastic bottles, water from pitcher should be used for drinking water and kettle and kulhad should be used for tea etc. Selfie points should be made as eco-friendly as possible and arrangements should be made for voters to plant saplings at polling stations.

A total of 69 candidates are in the fray for the by-elections in 7 assembly constituencies of Rajasthan. For this, a total of 19.37 lakh voters, including more than 10 lakh men, 9.32 lakh women and 7 third gender voters, will exercise their franchise on Wednesday.A total of 1,915 polling stations including 53 auxiliary booths have been set up for voting, so that voters do not have to wait in long queues. For this, a total of 1,915 polling parties have reached these centers and made necessary arrangements.