Here’s what minimum assured facilities will be provided for voters at polling station on voting days
In a communication sent to the Chief Election Officers, the Election Commission of India has directed that Minimum Assured Facilities shall be provided at all polling stations. The communication has an elaborate list of facilities that needs to be mandatorily provided to the voters at the polling booths on the day of voting by Chief Election officers of state and union territories.
The basic minimum facilities that electors will be facilitated with are as follows:
- Provision for Drinking Water: There should be a proper arrangement for drinking water facilities at the polling station and one employee shall be deployed at the polling station(s) to refill the water pots and to serve water to the voters standing in the queue.
- Adequate Furniture- There should be proper provision for basic amenities like tables, chairs and benches for voters standing in the queue at the polling stations.
- Provision for ramp- A ramp of slope 1:10 or less should be provided at the polling station to facilitate the PwD (Persons with Disabilities) voters, as per the directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of lndia. ln the polling stations where permanent ramps have not been provided, temporary ramp should be provided.
- Medical Kit - A Medical Kit containing Paracetamol medicine & items like gauze pads wound cleaning agent/scissors along with a medical attendant should be made available at each polling station for emergency use of voters.
- Help Desk- ln the polling station locations having multiple polling stations, a help desk should be set up with the objective of providing assistance to the voter, facilitating the voters to locate their particular polling station and issuance of voter slips. The Help Desk should be manned by Booth Level Officer (BLO).
- Toilets- There should be separate toilet for men and women voters. If two toilets are not available, pucca one should be earmarked for female voters and one temporary toilet be provided for male voters. One employee shall be deployed to keep the toilet clean throughout the day.
- Provision for Creche for children- There should be proper arrangement for creche at each polling station for children accompanying the electors. One trained attendant should be deployed to take care of these children.
- Queue Management: There should be three queues at the polling station: one for male voters, one for ladies voters and another for senior citizens and PwD electors. As per present practice, one male elector should be allowed to vote per two female electors. Preference should be given to senior citizens and PwD electors.
With India conducting the world history’s biggest election with over 900 million eligible voters and 1.035 million polling stations across the country, it will not be a piece of cake for the Election Commission of India to provide these facilities at every polling station. However, it will be important to see how many of these Assured Minimum Facilities are provided by the authorities.
Do let us know in the comment box how many of these Assured Minimum Facilities were provided at your local polling booth and what you thought or believe was missing at your booth.
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11-year-old dies by suicide after sexual assault in Bareilly; accused arrested
Bareilly (UP) (PTI): A 26-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl, who later died by suicide due to trauma, police said on Wednesday.
The post-mortem report confirmed sexual assault and multiple injuries on the minor's body, including bite marks and nail scratches. The cause of death was found to be hanging, they said.
According to ASP (South) Anshika Verma, the incident came to light on 27 April, when the girl, a Class 8 student, was found hanging at her home in Deoria Abdullaganj village under the Mirganj police station area. Initially, the family reported the death as suicide and was reluctant to pursue police action.
"The autopsy report changed the course of the investigation. It confirmed sexual assault and noted severe physical trauma. The cause of death was confirmed as hanging," Verma said.
A breakthrough in the case came from the statement of the victim's younger sister, who told police that the accused, Zeeshan (26), a resident of the same village, frequently loitered near the minor's school and allegedly gave her small sums of money to keep his interactions with her a secret, she said.
Police said that on the day of the incident, the accused allegedly lured the minor and assaulted her. Distressed by the incident, the child later took her own life while her mother was away, police said.
"Based on technical surveillance, CCTV footage, and statements from the family, we established Zeeshan's involvement. He was arrested near the Mirganj weekly market on Tuesday," they said.
