DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

Amid rising temperatures, Punjab's Chief Electoral Officer Sibin C on Friday said all polling stations in the state will have water coolers, fans and seating arrangements to provide relief to the voters. Polling for the 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab will be held in the last phase of the seven-phase general elections on June 1 -- when northern India is usually in the grip of severe heat waves.

During a virtual interaction with people, the CEO said more than 1,600 complaints of Model Code of Conduct violations have been received by his office so far and all of them have been settled.

In response to a query, the CEO said that special consideration is being given to the possibility of a heat wave on polling day.

Voters will be offered 'Chabeel' (sweetened water) to provide relief from the scorching heat. Each polling station will have water coolers, fans, seating arrangements, and sheds. A chair will be provided if more than 10 people are in the voting queue, he said during a Facebook live session -- 'Talk to your CEO Punjab'.

A special room for children, separate lines for the elderly and pregnant women and at least one wheelchair at each polling station will be ensured while medical kits will also be available with polling staff, the official added.

The CEO urged the people to actively participate in the electoral process so that Punjab achieves the goal of more than 70 per cent poll percentage as Punjab's voting percentage during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections was 65.96 per cent. On security arrangements, he informed that special attention is being paid to the border areas and identified sensitive polling areas in the state. He said flying squads and surveillance teams are monitoring violations, if any, of the model code of conduct during the election process. He reiterated that there will be 100 per cent webcasting of polling stations in the state during voting for the Lok Sabha polls on June 1.
(editor@dailyworld.in)