Andhra Pradesh - Eluru   

Lack of facilities irks poll staff

Photo: A.V.G. Prasad

Tense moments: Collector G. Jayalakshmi pacifying striking polling personnel in Eluru on Wednesday. —

ELURU: The stage is set for the second phase of polling on Thursday in West Godavari district.

According to Collector G. Jayalakshmi, arrangements are in place to enable a little over 25,61,900 voters to exercise their franchise in the district. Some 21,000 polling personnel left for their respective polling stations with polling material by Wednesday evening. The District Election Authority provided 6,700 electronic voting machines (EVMs) for conduct of polling in the two Lok Sabha and 15 Assembly segments.

Meanwhile, inadequate lunch arrangements spurred the polling personnel into a raging protest at Palacole, Eluru and Denduluru.

A frenzied mob of over 1,500 personnel staged a dharna with empty plates at Palacole, highlighting the alleged failure by the administration in making arrangements for lunch.

According to information, only 300 lunch packets were supplied as against the requirement of 1,700. A similar protest was staged at Eluru.

However, timely intervention by the Collector pacified the striking personnel. Lunch tokens were issued to the personnel at 11 a.m. but lunch packets failed to reach them even three hours after agonising wait, leading to protest. The women personnel complained to the Collector that there were no adequate drinking water and toilet facilities for them.

Reports reaching the district headquarters indicated that money virtually flowed like water in most of the Assembly segments in the district.

In Palacole, almost all the major contenders were alleged to have distributed money at the rate of Rs. 200 to Rs. 300 per vote. The police seized Rs. 13 lakhs cash from a supporter of an MLA candidate at Duggirala falling under the Denduluru Assembly segment and Rs. 7 lakhs from an MP candidate in the city.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Lack of facilities irks poll staff
Her cry for justice goes unheard in din of elections
Triangular contests make the scenario hazy bottomline

Copyright © 2009, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu