Amritsar: Poor amenities, unhygienic conditions; staff on poll duty brace for tough time

Manmeet Singh Gill

Amritsar, May 31

With nearly 20,000 employees assigned duties at various polling stations gathering at the training and dispatch centres to collect EVMs at 9 am on Friday, it marked the start of dreadful 48 hours of election duty during which they would be staying at their respective booths.

Villagers lend helping hand

• Most of the booths have been set up in government schools where the condition of washrooms is pitiable
• Unless these employees make some arrangements on their own, they may have to go without a bath on the polling day
• Though the condition of schools is equally poor in rural areas, employees are relatively satisfied as they get help from villagers

Most of the booths have been set up in government schools where the condition of washrooms is pitiable. Moreover, the schools have urinals only. It means unless these employees make some arrangements on their own, they would have to go without a bath on the polling day.

An employee assigned duty at BLS school in Vijay Nagar said, “The condition of washrooms is so pitiable that one cannot enter these. There is no cleanliness.” The employee added that they have been given old mattresses. “They have not even given us beds and there is no point in asking for coolers,” he said.

Another employee assigned duty at Ajay Public School in the Tung Bala area also narrated a similar story. “Cold drinking water is also not available. All talks about proper arrangements being made for elections are farce,” he said.

The CRPF jawans assigned duties at polling booths set up on the Khalsa College for Women complex said they had to repeatedly ask for drinking water after which they were given a water cooler. “We are coming from Delhi where arrangements are good. Here, we had to get the place cleaned after coming and had to plead for a fan,” said a female CRPF personnel.

In rural areas, though the condition of schools is equally poor, employees are relatively satisfied. A female employee from GMC assigned duty in the Ajnala area said, “We were offered tea with sweets by villagers when we arrived here. Later, they brought ‘sharbat’. They will also provide us dinner. Some even offered to accommodate us at their homes during the night as the condition of the school there is not good.”

A government schoolteacher said, “We have been provided cots by villagers. They have also sent us beddings. In rural areas, people are generally generous towards election staff.”

“This is the reason why employees use their connections or fake medical certificates to get exemption from poll duty. Election duty is the most dreadful thing in the life of a government employee,” said Satpal Singh, a retired teacher.