73 sensitive polling booths identified in Erode district

District Election Officer and Collector S. Kandasamy on Monday said that 73 sensitive booths located in 55 polling stations have been identified across the district.

Addressing the media at the Collectorate here, he said a total of 2,379 polling booths have been established in 984 polling stations across the eight Assembly constituencies in the district for the April 23 Assembly election. “To ensure transparency and security, webcasting cameras have been installed both inside and outside all polling booths for real-time monitoring,” he said.

Arrangements have also been made to safely collect and store voters’ mobile phones outside the polling stations, with provisions to return them after the voting process is completed.

Mr. Kandasamy said adequate Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines have been distributed to all constituencies, while sufficient reserve machines have also been retained to meet any contingency requirements during polling. A total of 11,420 polling personnel and 125 micro observers have been appointed to ensure smooth conduct of polling, he added.

The Collector said 72 flying squads and 72 static surveillance teams were operating round the clock on a rotational basis across the district to monitor Model Code of Conduct.

Unaccounted cash to the tune of ₹1.59 crore was seized during vehicle checks and surveillance. In addition, liquor worth ₹3.47 lakh, narcotic substances valued at ₹28.22 lakh, gold and silver articles worth ₹52 lakh, and other goods and freebies valued at ₹5.44 lakh have also been confiscated. The total value of seizures stands at ₹2.49 crore. Of the cash seized, ₹1.50 crore has been released after due verification, he said.