JAMMU, SEP 12: In a significant development, the State Election Commissioner (SEC), B R Sharma, chaired a meeting today to assess the preparations for the addition of left-out voters in the Panchayat Electoral Roll through a new Supplement.
During the extensive review meeting, SEC emphasized the importance of ensuring that no eligible voters, as of the qualifying date of January 1, 23, are omitted from the current updating process. This process is scheduled to commence on September 20th and conclude on October 20th. Deputy Commissioners were provided with a tentative schedule to kickstart pre-updation activities.
The meeting delved into various aspects, including the availability of soft and hard copies of Panchayat Electoral Rolls-2023 for public display in the preparation of the 2nd Supplement. Printing of electoral rolls and forms, along with the availability of necessary infrastructure, were also discussed. The strategy to include new voters in Panchayat rolls, whose names already exist in the Assembly Rolls with respect to the qualifying date of January 1, 2023, was another point of consideration. Additionally, the availability and updating of ERO/AERO/Panchayat Election Booth Officials (PEBO) information on district and SEC websites were addressed.
The meeting explored the mechanism for updating and printing in both online and offline modes, including the handling of passwords, user IDs, and the roles of NIC/DIOs. It also covered the financial requirements of each district for Electoral Roll (Updation & SVEEP activity), a tentative schedule for revision, a handbook for roll revision, meetings between DCs and District Technical teams led by the DIO of the respective district, and discussions with ERO/AERO/PLBOs along with RDD functionaries.
SEC requested comprehensive details from all deputy commissioners regarding polling stations, physical verification of polling stations, their classification into various categories, and the availability of basic facilities. The meeting also addressed concerns related to migrant voters, special categories of voters, and the availability of Panchayat-wise data for electoral use.
The meeting witnessed the participation of all Deputy Commissioners, the Secretary of SEC, Directors of RDD Kashmir and RDD Jammu, Director of Panchayat Raj, Jammu, Relief and Rehabilitation Commissioner, J&K State Informatics Officers, Dy DEOs, DPOs, and other relevant stakeholders.
