The distribution of special postal ballot papers to voters who are COVID-19 patients or in quarantine began on Wednesday ahead of the upcoming local body polls.
So far, designated health officers have listed 13,795 persons on the certified lists as special voters.
They include 4,251 voters who are active COVID-19 patients and 9,544 others who are in quarantine.
130 teams
The distribution of the postal ballots is being carried out by 130 teams headed by special polling officers (SPOs) in the district.
A team of officers led by District Collector and District Election Officer Navjot Khosa despatched the first team on Wednesday morning.
The officers call on the special voters wearing PPE (personal protective equipment) and observing other COVID-19 protocols.
The certified lists will be prepared till 3 p.m. on December 7.
Special voters
The district goes to the polls on December 8 in the first phase of the local body polls. The Collector reiterated that special voters on the certified lists will have the option to vote only by special postal ballots. The district will have 16 centres for the counting of votes on December 16.
The votes polled at the three-tier panchayats will be counted at the block panchayat level. The Corporation and municipalities have one centre each.
Counting centres
The votes polled in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation will be counted at Sarvodaya Vidyalaya at Mar Ivanios Vidya Nagar. The counting centres for the municipalities are as follows: Varkala municipality (municipality office), Neyyattinkara (Neyyattinkara boys’ HSS), Attingal municipality (municipality office), Nedumangad (Mancha BHS).
