The Hindu       09.09.2016

Guidelines for appointing civic poll officers issued

The Tamil Nadu State Election Commission has issued guidelines that District Electoral Officers need to follow while appointing officers for the local body polls. Those involved in elections should not be part of the same local body, it said. In Municipal Corporations, those working in a zone should not be involved for electoral work in the same zone.

While choosing employees, those known to have associated with a political party or to the candidate should not be involved in electoral work. In case a relative of the employee was contesting, the employee should not be posted in the same local body.

Mostly those in essential services such as police, health, electricity, water supply, dairy farms have been exempted from being appointed as polling officers. One or more woman polling officer should be involved in booths, the poll commission stated.