Visakhapatnam:District administrations across North Andhra have completed arrangements for the Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituency (ZPTC) and Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) elections scheduled for Thursday. Polling will be held from 7 am to 5 pm under tight security and extensive monitoring.
In Visakhapatnam district, polling will be held in Anandapuram, Bheemunipatnam, Padmanabham and Pendurthi mandals for four ZPTC and 53 MPTC seats. Around 1.62 lakh voters are expected to exercise their franchise at 203 polling stations. Thirteen candidates are contesting the ZPTC seats and 117 are in the fray for the MPTC seats.
District collector M. Abhisikth Kishore said arrangements had been completed to ensure free and fair polling. A total of 1,233 election personnel, including 244 presiding officers and 244 assistant presiding officers, have been deployed. White ballot papers will be used for ZPTC elections and pink ballot papers for MPTC elections.
Live CCTV streaming has been arranged at 102 sensitive polling stations, while cameras have been installed at the remaining polling booths. Polling at all 115 locations will be videographed and monitored through a command-and-control centre at the Zilla Parishad office. Polling percentage data will be collected every two hours.
After polling, ballot boxes will be shifted under security to designated strong rooms in Bheemunipatnam, Anandapuram and Pendurthi.
In Srikakulam district, collector and district election officer Swapnil Dinkar Pundkar urged rural voters to participate in the elections. He said special arrangements had been made at all 2,004 polling stations, including facilities for senior citizens and persons with disabilities. Measures had also been taken to protect ballot boxes from rain.
In Vizianagaram district, collector S. Ram Sundar Reddy reviewed preparations through a teleconference and directed officials to ensure the smooth distribution of polling materials and transportation of staff. He instructed officials to seal strong rooms in the presence of political party representatives and submit regular polling updates.
In Parvathipuram Manyam district, superintendent of police S.V. Madhav Reddy said around 900 police personnel had been deployed across 799 polling stations in 15 mandals. Special surveillance teams, flying squads, static surveillance teams, mobile patrol units, drones and CCTV cameras would be used to ensure peaceful polling and enforce the election code.
Anakapalli district is set to witness polling for 24 ZPTC and 425 MPTC seats. District collector and election officer Vijaya Krishnan said 80 candidates were contesting the ZPTC seats and 979 were in the fray for MPTC seats. More than 10,300 election personnel and 2,255 police personnel had been deployed across 1,530 polling stations. Arrangements had been made for 100 per cent webcasting and videography.
In Alluri Sitarama Raju district, General Election Observer Ronanki Kurma Nath inspected distribution centres in Pedabayalu and Munchangiputtu mandals. He directed officials to follow Election Commission guidelines and ensure the smooth distribution of polling materials and provision of necessary facilities to voters.
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