First time voters and those enrolling afresh for the upcoming Assembly elections, will get their respective electors’ photo identity cards (EPICs) at their doorstep, free of cost.
Booth-level officers will deliver the EPICs by visiting the home of each voter, District Election Officer and GHMC Commissioner M. Dana Kishore said.
Alternatively, the voters may visit the office of the electoral registration officers concerned to get the card.
The coloured PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) cards are in the process of being printed, and will be ready within a couple of days for distribution, Mr. Dana Kishore informed at a media conference on Saturday.
Field-level verification is on for a total of 99,226 Form-6 applications for fresh enrolments and it is likely that about 70,000 voters may be enrolled afresh in the second supplement to the Electoral Rolls by November 19.
Replacement cards
Those who have lost their EPIC card may get a fresh one by paying ₹ 25 at any of the 18 Mee Seva Centres in the Hyderabad district. All in all, the distribution of EPICs is expected to be finished by December 1. Voter slips, printed with route map to the polling station, will be delivered at the doorstep too.
Scrutiny of the electronic voting machines (EVMs) and voter verifiable paper audit trail (VVPATs) has been completed and first randomisation of the machines will take place on November 12 and 13. After this, they will be sent to the returning officers concerned to be stored in strong rooms under tight security.
“We have identified 15 centres for storing the EVMs, most of which are colleges and sports stadiums. Access to the strong rooms is restricted by two level security round-the-clock, double lock system and CC TV surveillance,” Mr. Dana Kishore informed.
A total of 23,000 persons are needed for successful conduct of elections, and as of now, there is shortage of 2,000. Requisitions have been made to other departments.
Election observers
Election Commission will deploy eight expenditure observers who will stay here for five to six days, and take note of the expenditure of the candidates.
Accessible elections is the motto this time, the District Election Officer said, and explained functioning of the VAADA (Voter Accessibility App for the Differently Abled) mobile app, which will enable the physically challenged to enter their details either through text or voice message, and seek specific help.
Webcasting elections
Number of polling stations may increase from the present 3,866 with more enrolments, he said, adding that each constituency will have one to five model polling stations with all facilities, and one station with only women officials.
College students are being enlisted for webcasting the polls, with preference being given to those bringing laptops.
Thirty-nine complaints of model code violation have been filed so far through C-Vigil app, of which 25 have been dropped, and 11 have been addressed.
A total of ₹ 17 crore in cash has been confiscated till date, apart from liquor worth ₹ 2.5 lakh, and silver bars worth ₹ 11.5 lakh, he added.
