Tripura implements special measures for simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly by-elections

Agartala (Tripura) [India], April 5 (ANI): Gearing up for the Lok Sabha elections and the simultaneous by-elections in Tripura’s Ramnagar assembly constituency, Chief Electoral Officer of Tripura (West) Dr Vishal Kumar, said on Friday that multi-colour ballot papers and separate polling compartments will be introduced exclusively for the Ramnagar assembly constituency.

The office of the Chief Electoral Officer in Tripura has rolled out special guidelines for simultaneous elections going to be held in the Ramnagar assembly constituency.

The electors of the constituency are set to cast votes twice on April 19 to elect the MLA of their area and the MP from the West Tripura parliamentary constituency, an official told ANI.

Speaking exclusively to ANI, the Returning Officer of West Tripura, Dr Vishal Kumar said “The office of the CEO has issued a detailed guideline for the voters in this regard. Polling personnel who would be deployed in the constituency are also imparted proper training so that they can handle the situation properly. We have decided to provide extra polling personnel for this constituency, as one voter will cast his vote twice. Two separate compartments will be set up inside the polling station. Clear instructions would be written on the compartments in Bengali and English so that the voters could easily understand.”

According to him, multi-colour ballot papers will also be introduced for Lok Sabha and Assembly by-polls. “For assembly, pink ballot paper will be used, while for Lok Sabha, white paper will be used. Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will carry dummy ballots to demonstrate to the voters if confusion arises,” he said.

From a security point of view, he said, a strike force of the Central Armed Paramilitary Forces (CAPF) will be constituted to look after the bordering areas.

“Most of the area under the constituency is highly urbanised, and hence the security infrastructure available here is also highly improved. For the bordering areas, we shall form a strike force of CAPF. Apart from that, CCTV, webcasting, etc. will be put in place to avert any security-related problems,” he added.

On being asked about special measures to improve voting, Dr. Kumar said, “The ECI has taken a progressive step by allowing voters above 85 years of age and persons with disabilities (PwD) to apply for home voting facilities. In the West Tripura constituency, over 5,000 people have applied for the home voting facility. They will exercise their franchise on April 09, 10 and 12.”

Apart from that, service voters are allowed to cast their votes through the new EPDS mechanism. “The number of service voters would be around 7,000 to 8,000. The Tripura State Rifles Jawans now posted outside Tripura on law and order duty can also access this facility.”

Other facilities, like sheds, drinking water and other assured minimum facilities, will be available in the polling stations, he added.

Notably, the upcoming general elections in Tripura are scheduled to be held in two phases. The West Tripura seat will go to the polls on April 19, while the East Tripura seat will witness voting on April 26. The counting of votes will be held on June 4.