Covid norms to remain in upcoming polls: EC

NEW DELHI: All Covid-19 health and safety protocols will be followed during upcoming assembly elections in the states of Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and in the Union territory of Puducherry, due to take place before May, people familiar with the matter said.

The elections follow the October-november assembly polls in Bihar, where 57% out of 73 million voters turned out. The Election Commission had added over 30,000 polling stations to reduce the risk of transmission of Covid-19 while ensuring regular sanitization and availability of personal protective equipment for those overseeing the elections.

“The EC is in the process of determining how many extra polling stations will be needed in each state,” a person familiar with the matter said. “The elections will have to follow Covid-19 protocols.”

The protocols will be followed irrespective of the massive vaccine roll-out, which personnel of the Election Commission will help conduct. “Even if a vaccine is administered, not all the people will be able to get access to it,” said the person cited above. “The Commission has to consider that the risk of Covid-19 still exists. It will be factored in and accordingly addressed.”

A collective electorate of 200 million voters will be eligible to vote in the upcoming assembly polls. A new feature of the polls will be a digital voter ID card, which the Commission plans to launch before the end of January. All new voters to be registered will be provided with the E-EPIC, the digital voter ID, reducing potential hassles at the polling station; the QR codes can be scanned and logged to provide real time data to the Commission.

“The elections are on schedule,” the first person mentioned above said.