All arrangements in place for rural body polls in Amritsar, Tarn Taran

The district administration has completed all preparations for the zila parishad and block samiti elections, with polling teams dispatched to rural polling stations on Saturday. Elections will be held in 21 zila parishad zones and 132 block samiti zones across the district.

The district has a total of 24 zila parishad zones and 195 block samiti zones. However, three zila parishad members and 63 block samiti members have already been declared elected unopposed, as no other candidates filed nominations against them or their nomination papers were rejected.

Voting will be conducted through ballot papers from 8 am to 4 pm on Sunday. After polling, ballot boxes will be deposited at 10 designated counting centres set up by the district election office. The counting of votes will be held on December 17.

To ensure free, fair and peaceful elections, the district administration has declared a dry day. The ban on the sale of liquor will come into effect from midnight tonight and will continue till 10 am on December 15.

Strong security arrangements have been put in place by the police administration, which stated that all preparations have been completed to conduct the elections in a peaceful and transparent manner. In the city, Mai Bhago College has been designated as the main dispatch centre from where polling teams are being sent to different areas.

Around 2,800 police personnel have been deployed for election duty. The security arrangements are being supervised by 11 DSPs, three SPs and the SSP, Amritsar (Rural). A total of 10 dispatch centres have been set up in the district, and additional police force has been requisitioned from outside wherever required.

Vigilance teams and companies of the Punjab Armed Police have also been deployed to maintain law and order. Returning Officer Majitha and Regional Transport Officer Khushdil Singh Sandhu said that 119 polling booths have been set up in Majitha-1 and 97 in Majitha-2. All election material, including ballot papers and ballot boxes, is ready and the randomisation process has been completed.

Additional security has been deployed in sensitive and highly sensitive areas. Police and administrative officials have appealed to voters to cast their votes without fear and to maintain peace, assuring that strict arrangements are in place to ensure a smooth election process.

Tarn Taran: Polling parties, along with election material, were dispatched to polling stations on Saturday for the elections to the zila parishad and block samitis. The Additional Deputy Commissioner-cum-Returning Officer (RO) informed that out of the 20 zila parishad zones, elections will be held in seven zones, as candidates from 12 zones have already been declared elected unopposed.

The election to one zila parishad zone has been cancelled as all nomination papers were rejected for one reason or another. Out of the total 165 block samiti zones, candidates from 98 zones have been declared elected unopposed, while polling will be held in the remaining 67 zones.

The RO said that a total of 554 polling booths have been set up across the district to ensure the peaceful conduct of elections. He added that election staff have been properly trained for the purpose. Of these, 100 booths have been declared sensitive, where additional police force has been deployed.

He further stated that the elections will be conducted in a transparent and fair manner and no one will be allowed to violate the law. He said that preparations by the district and police administrations are complete and voting will be held on Sunday (December 14) from 7 am to 5 pm.

Appealing to voters, the RO urged people to exercise their democratic right and participate in the electoral process in large numbers.