The Election Commission (EC) announced the dates for the Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa at a press conference on Saturday. The elections will be held in February and March this year.
Amid concerns over rising Covid-19 cases in the country, the EC said its “first and foremost objective” is a “Covid-safe election”. For the same, a lot of “advanced planning and meticulous preparation has been done”, said Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra.
In light of the fact that at least some people will be Covid-positive and, hence, under quarantine at the time of the elections, a question arises over how these people will cast their votes. Surely, Covid-19 cannot take away from them their universal adult franchise!
COVID PATIENTS TO VOTE VIA POSTAL BALLOT
Addressing this question, the EC said on Saturday that the postal ballot facility will be available to those who are Covid-positive at the time of voting during the upcoming elections.
Postal ballots allow voters to cast their votes remotely by recording their preference on ballot papers sent to them and returning them —by post, electronically or by hand—to the election officer before counting of votes.
This facility will be available during the Assembly elections for Covid-affected people as well as senior citizens above the age of 80 and people with disabilities.
Election Commission banks on vaccination for 'Covid-safe' polls
The election Commission is relying on enhanced vaccination of both polling personnel and voters to deliver a 'Covid-safe' election in five states amid a surge in coronavirus cases in the country driven by the highly contagious Omicron variant.
Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra on Saturday said he has asked the chief secretaries of poll-bound states to accelerate vaccination of all citizens above 18 years and ensure precautionary dose for all poll officials who have been designated as frontline workers.
Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa will be held between February 10 and March 7 in seven phases with the counting of votes on March 10, the poll panel announced on Saturday.
can't say Corona is only because of the elections... We have ensured that most people are vaccinated. The situation is dynamic and we are monitoring it," he replied when concerns were raised over holding elections in the middle of a pandemic.
Chandra said COVID-19 cases were increasing rapidly in Maharashtra and Karnataka where no election has been scheduled.
"There is no need to panic, but there is a need for caution. Polling officials and booths are safe," the chief election commissioner said while urging voters to come out in huge numbers to exercise their franchise.
"As on January 7, in Goa, more than 95.8 per cent of people have been vaccinated with both doses. In Uttarakhand, 99.67 per cent of people have got their first dose and 82.39 per cent have got the second dose," Chandra said.
The chief election commissioner said that in Uttar Pradesh, 89.35 per cent population had been administered the first dose and more than 52 per cent have been fully vaccinated.
"In Punjab, 81.9 per cent have been given the first dose of vaccine and 45.6 per cent covered by both doses. In Manipur, 59.6 per cent had been jabbed with the first dose while 44.8 per cent had been administered both shots."
He said that in absolute figures, as of January 7, more than 15 crore people in these five states together have got the first dose of vaccine and more than nine crore had been administered both doses.
Vaccination coverage in poll-bound states have improved after the intervention of the commission, Chandra said.
As the third wave of the pandemic reared its head again with the emergence of the latest 'variant of concern' of coronavirus, the poll panel held meetings with the health and home secretaries and also with health experts.
