No exemption from election duty, District Collector R Muthyala Raju tells staff in Eluru

Eluru: West Godavari District Collector R Muthyala Raju has said no employee or official will be exempted from attending election duty.

At a meeting of nodal officers convened on ZPTC, MPTC, municipal and panchayat elections here, the District Collector made it clear that all employees and officials should compulsorily take part in election duty. No leaves or permissions would be given until the election process was completed, he added.

He said services of all employees working in various government departments would be used for elections. If anybody fails to attend training classes or poll duties, they would be immediately placed under suspension, he warned.

The District Collector asked the officials concerned to inform the employees about the election duties. The particulars of employees such as their present working place, place of residence and place of birth should be collected from the employees before assigning them election duties. Employees working in a constituency should be assigned election duty in other constituency. With regard to women employees, the election duty should be assigned in the adjoining Mandal, he added. Muthyala Raju said that the officials should prepare a training schedule for election to cover all the employees. The election training schedule, particulars of employees attending for training and those absent should also be submitted.

The District Collector announced that Zilla Parishad CEO would act as nodal officer for ZPTC and MPTC elections. For municipal elections, Eluru Urban Development Authority vice-chairman and for Panchayat elections, district panchayat officer and project director of DRDA will be the nodal officers.

The District Collector directed the officials to make ready sufficient number of ballot boxes for the elections. Election Code of Conduct should be implemented strictly, he directed.

He ordered the officials to remove banners, posters and other campaign material of different political parties in various areas with immediate effect. Polling ballot papers and postal ballot papers should be printed and sent to respective places as per schedule. Basic facilities should be provided in polling centres. Voter awareness programmes should be taken up, he ordered.