Kulgam, Apr 26: The District Election Officer (DEO) Kulgam, Athar Aamir Khan on Friday said the district, as a constituent of the Anantnag-Rajouri Parliamentary constituency, is thoroughly prepared for the imminent Lok Sabha elections.
He said all necessary arrangements have been made in the district, with particular emphasis on Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) initiatives to enhance voter turnout.
Khan said, “The Election Commission of India (ECI) conveyed a timeline to us, indicating that the randomization of EVMs has already been completed. In the Anantnag-Rajouri parliamentary seat, two ballot units are to be set up due to the participation of more than 16 candidates, including NOTA. The supplementary randomisation, which was scheduled to take place, has already been conducted.”
“We have shifted our EVMs to the respective assembly segment control rooms or dispatched them to strong room centres where security measures have been implemented. We are now awaiting further instructions and guidelines from the ECI or CEO regarding the commissioning of EVMs, and all procedures are being carried out in the presence of representatives from political parties,” he added.
The DEO said that transparency is ensured throughout the process. When the warehouse is opened, it is done in the presence of political party representatives, he said. “Similarly, when EVMs are shifted to respective strong rooms and sealed, it is all done in the presence of party representatives. No errors or casualness are tolerated,” he explained.
All aspects are meticulously taken care of, including the randomization of polling staff, Amir said, adding that the first randomisation occurs at the district level to determine the required staff, followed by randomisation to assign assembly duties, and finally at the last moment they are informed about their polling booths. “In this case, the second randomization has been completed, with General Observers overseeing the process,” he said.
The DEO said that the General Observer, Expenditure Observer and Police Observer visited the district and expressed satisfaction with the arrangements. He said the administration is fully prepared, and there are no anticipated issues.
The district has placed special emphasis on Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) to encourage voter turnout, he said.
Deputy District Election Officer (Dy DEO) Kulgam, Bilal Kamgar, told Rising Kashmir that Booth Level Officers (BLOs) have facilitated the submission of Form 12D for eligible voters, such as senior citizens above 85 years of age and Persons with Disabilities (PwD), ensuring arrangements are in place for them.
“The district boasts over 3.24 lakh electors, including 3061 persons with disabilities (PwD). Besides, we have 2875 senior citizens above 85 years of age eligible for home voting. Our teams have reached out to them, and we are hopeful of achieving greater participation in the electoral process,” he said.
