Mohali: Polling officers train in heat wave management

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Mohali, May 5

In the run-up to the polling in the district, the first round of training was organised by the administration at Mohali, Kharar and Dera Bassi.

District Election Officer Aashika Jain said after the randomization of polling staff, a total of 5,448 personnel, including Presiding Officers, Assistant Presiding Officers and Polling Officers, were randomly picked by the software for training.

She said the first training session was held to make the polling staff familiar with the EVMs and VVPATs, their election duties, and the formats of reports they have to submit on the day of polling. She added that they were also told to conduct mock polls on EVMs before starting actual polling.

The DEO said a total of four training sessions would be organised in the district before the actual polling. She said the training was held in two sessions today to equip the staff with the technicalities of the polling day.

DEO Jain said officials visited the School of Eminence in Phase 3B1, Mohali; the Government Polytechnic College at Khuni Majra in Kharar; and the Dera Bassi Government College.

To address the potential risks associated with the heat wave during the polling process in the district, DEO Jain held a meeting with the Assistant Returning Officers (SDMs) of the district. Addressing the meeting, she said, “Heat wave management has been included as a part of the training of polling staff. The staff has been being guided to handle the situation in case any voter does not feel well. The volunteers and health workers at the polling stations would carry wet towels, drinking water and ORS pouches to counter the heat. The AROs have been instructed to arrange fans, hydration stations, waiting areas for physically handicapped voters, medical facilities, flexible queue management and emergency response plans.”