NTR collector inspects counting centres

Vijayawada: NTR district collector Dr G Lakshmisha inspected the arrangements for strong rooms and vote-counting centres being set up at Andhra Loyola College in Vijayawada on Tuesday as part of preparations for the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) elections. The VMC election is scheduled to be held on November 1, with counting of votes on November 3.

During the inspection, Municipal Commissioner and Election Returning Officer HM Dhyanachandra and other officials briefed the Collector on the arrangements being made at the college. Dr Lakshmisha issued several instructions to ensure that the election process was conducted smoothly, transparently and in accordance with the guidelines of the Election Commission.

The collector directed officials to put in place a robust three-tier security system at the strong rooms where ballot boxes or electronic voting machines would be stored after polling. He also stressed the need for round-the-clock CCTV surveillance to ensure the safety of the stored election material.

He instructed officials to arrange counting tables and barricades in accordance with prescribed norms to facilitate smooth and transparent counting. Separate access routes and necessary facilities should be provided for counting personnel, agents and media representatives, he said. Directing Dhyanachandra to coordinate with all concerned departments, Dr Lakshmisha said there should be no lapses in election arrangements and that the Election Commission’s guidelines must be followed scrupulously.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dasari Srinivasa Rao

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Dasari Srinivasa Rao is a Staff Reporter with The Hans India, covering NTR and Krishna districts, with a primary focus on Vijayawada. He has 32 years of experience in journalism. His reporting spans a wide range of beats, including city and rural development, politics, irrigation, education, crime, and human-interest stories.

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