The Hindu 16.02.2013
Preparations under way for local body elections in Bidar district
As many as 281 booths set up in 149 wards: Deputy Commissioner.
Preparations to ensure the smooth conduct of the urban
local body elections in Bidar district are under way, said P.C. Jaffer,
Deputy Commissioner and District Electoral Officer, said here on Friday.
In
the district, elections will be held for two city municipal councils
(Bidar and Basavakalyan), three town municipal councils (Humnabad,
Bhalki and Chitguppa), and one town panchayat (Aurad).
As many as 281 booths have been set up in 149 wards. The polls will be held on March 7, and votes will be counted on March 11.
As
per the timetable, nominations can be filed till February 23. They will
be scrutinised on February 25, and the last date for withdrawal of
nominations is February 27. Those interested in contesting for the city
municipal councils have to pay a deposit of Rs. 1,000. For town
municipal councils, the fee is Rs. 500, and for town panchayats, Rs.
250.
‘Sensitive booths’
“Eighty-five
of the booths are considered hypersensitive. Some persons with criminal
antecedents will be taken into custody before the elections,” said
Superintendent of Police K. Tyagarajan.
Ujwal Ghosh,
zilla panchayat Chief Executive Officer, and Sunil Panwar, Deputy
Conservator of Forests, have been appointed supervising officials, along
with 20 district officials, who have been appointed election officials.
In addition, 1,124 booth-level officials have also been appointed.
Distribution
Bidar has 149 booths in 35 wards for over 1.3 lakh voters. Basavakalyan has 47 booths in 31 wards, for 39,754 voters.
Humnabad has 24,904 voters in 23 wards with 25 booths.
Both
Bhalki (with 21,782 voters) and Chitguppa (with 14,148 voters) have 23
booths each in 23 wards, while Aurad has 14 booths in 14 wards for 9,959
voters.
Enforcement
The
code of conduct for elections has come into force in the jurisdiction of
all urban local bodies, from Friday, according to Dr. Jaffer. The State
Election Commission (SEC) has issued regulations regarding the smooth
conduct of elections and the monitoring of candidates’ expenses.
All
banners, posters and buntings may be put up only after the necessary
permissions are obtained from officials on election duty. Their content
should confirm to SEC rules.
Eight nodal officers,
each with a team of five, have been appointed to monitor any violations
of the code of conduct. All nodal officers will report to Mr. Ghosh, the
Deputy Commissioner said.
