To usher in the new President, ‘Mr Ballot Box’ takes a flight | Political Pulse News,The Indian Express
Once the ballot boxes reach the state capitals, these are stored in previously sanitised and properly sealed "strong rooms" that are strictly monitored through cameras.
Six days to go for the presidential election, the ballot boxes have begun their journey. On Tuesday, after the customary handing over, the boxes were taken by the designated officers to states. One such, for example, took a Vistara flight in a seat assigned for ‘Mr Ballot Box’, from New Delhi to Chandigarh.
Seats were similarly set aside on flights to other states, with the rule being that the ballot boxes must have a separate ticket, right in the front row. The seat next to ‘Mr Ballot Box’ is occupied by the officer personally supervising the transport. Election Commission rules mandate collection of the poll material by assistant returning officers, including one senior officer.
Election Commission officials said that the boxes have been ferried completely by air since 2017. “In the past, they have been transported by trains as well. Today they have gone to one state by road,” an official said.
Once the ballot boxes reach the state capitals, these are stored in previously sanitised and properly sealed “strong rooms” that are strictly monitored through cameras.
Apart from the ballot boxes, the Election Commission Tuesday started distributing and dispatching ballot papers, special pens, and other sealed election material to the state Assembly Secretariats, apart from the National Capital Territory of Delhi and Union territory of Puducherry.
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