Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 27 (UNI) Kerala is setting up 33,711 polling stations across the state for the two-phase local body elections scheduled for December 9 and 11. Of these, 28,127 stations will function in the three-tier panchayats, 3,569 in municipalities and 2,015 in municipal corporations.
The State Election Commission has issued detailed guidelines to district election officials to ensure that all polling stations strictly follow green protocols.
Local body secretaries have been directed to segregate and dispose of waste generated on polling day in accordance with environmental norms, and to utilise the services of Haritha Karma Sena wherever necessary.
All buildings designated as polling stations must be equipped with electricity, drinking water, toilets and essential furniture. Adequate waiting arrangements such as benches, chairs and shaded areas should be provided outside for voters.
The Commission has also instructed officials to ensure special facilities for senior citizens and persons with disabilities. Temporary ramps must be set up wherever permanent ones are not available, and rest areas should be arranged either inside or near the polling stations.
Visually impaired voters, those with disabilities, patients and the elderly should be allowed to vote without waiting in queues, and a helper may accompany blind or incapacitated voters when needed.
Lighting and fans must be fully functional on the polling day and the previous day. In places without water or electricity, local offices of the KSEB and the Water Authority must be contacted to provide supply, failing which portable arrangements should be made.
The Commission emphasised that no station should face inadequate lighting and instructed officials to make emergency arrangements for toilet facilities by using nearby institutions or houses if required.
District officials have also been asked to explore the possibility of arranging food for polling staff with the support of Kudumbashree. Roads leading to interior polling stations must be cleared, and premises cleaned at least two days before voting.
When polling teams arrive, the stations must be clean and ready for preliminary procedures. Local secretaries must ensure proper arrangements on polling day and must return the premises clean after the election. District collectors have been tasked with ensuring compliance with these directions.
Excluding Mattannur municipality, Thiruvananthapuram district will have 3,264 polling stations, Kollam 2,720, Pathanamthitta 1,225, Alappuzha 2,085, Kottayam 1,925, Idukki 1,192, Ernakulam 3,021, Thrissur 3,282, Palakkad 3,054, Malappuram 4,343, Kozhikode 3,097, Wayanad 828, Kannur 2,305 and Kasaragod 1,370.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission clarified that postal ballots will be available only to officials on election duty. Under the Kerala Panchayat Raj and Municipality Acts, postal votes cannot be extended to any other category.
Even during the 2020 local body elections held in the midst of the pandemic, postal ballots were restricted to duty staff, while special ballots were permitted only for COVID-19 patients and those in quarantine, as defined under the Epidemic Diseases Act.
Postal ballots will be issued upon receiving applications, and officials must attach copies of their election duty orders when applying in the prescribed form within the stipulated timeframe.
Applications must be submitted to the returning officer of the ward in which the applicant is registered. The Postal Department has made arrangements to ensure that applicants do not require postal stamps either for receiving or returning the ballots.
