The Hindu : Front Page : Focus on vulnerability mapping, CEC tells obsevers

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Monday, Mar 16, 2009
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Focus on vulnerability mapping, CEC tells obsevers

J Balaji

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission has urged the 2,500-odd Central election observers of the coming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Sikkim to strictly follow the directions on vulnerability mapping to ensure free and fair polls.

They were asked to concentrate not only inside polling stations to prevent bogus voting, booth capturing and other violations of election laws but also outside the booths in small lanes and gullies to prevent violence and any sort of “silent intimidation,” said Chief Election Commissioner N. Gopalaswami. Earlier, he chaired a meeting of poll observers here along with Election Commissioners Navin Chawla and S.Y. Quraishi.

The observers had been directed to identify contact points or persons who would provide such information and be extra careful during polling and fan out to the areas already identified to see that the voters were not prevented or intimidated by any one in any form. The “vulnerability mapping” was successfully implemented during the Uttar Pradesh elections two years ago, he said. This concept was different from the sensitive and hyper-sensitive booths. Besides, 20 per cent of the booths in the country would be monitored by micro observers.

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