Kathmandu, 2 Mar: Personnel and security forces assigned to conduct the election on Falgun 21 are set to be mobilized to polling stations across the country by this afternoon. The Election Commission has issued a circular directing all staff involved in the election to reach their designated centers by Monday afternoon.
Teams including security personnel have already arrived at polling stations in remote and inaccessible areas for several days. The Election Commission has instructed staff in areas with transportation access to reach their centers and make preparations by Monday afternoon.
“We have already issued directives that teams of staff and security personnel must reach polling stations in all locations by Monday evening,” said Narayan Prasad Bhattarai, spokesperson for the Election Commission. “After receiving the election materials, they also need to complete some tasks at the polling station on Monday itself.”
According to Spokesperson Bhattarai, by Monday afternoon, notices must be posted clearly demarcating the four boundaries of the polling station compound. They will put up notices so that everyone can clearly see which area within the perimeter is designated as the polling station.
Election officers across the country will receive election materials from the respective District Election Officer’s offices in the presence of security personnel. The team of security forces and election staff will remain together until the election is completed.
According to Election Commission Spokesperson Bhattarai, reports as of Sunday indicated that staff had already reached over two hundred polling stations in remote areas. The Commission had prioritized the mobilization of staff to centers in Sudurpashchim and Karnali provinces that lack road access. By Sunday afternoon, staff and security personnel had reached approximately 300 polling stations that are without road access or located far from district headquarters.
In areas with comparatively better road access, staff had arrived by Sunday afternoon. In urban areas and centers in the Terai, staff will reach the polling stations by Monday afternoon at the latest.
The Nepal Police provides security for election materials, including ballot papers, which are under the responsibility of the Election Officer. The Election Commission and Police Headquarters have instructed security personnel to remain with the Election Officer, other staff, and the sealed election materials, including ballot papers, at all times and maintain 24-hour surveillance.
According to the Polling Station Determination Procedure, there will be at least one polling station in each ward of every local level. However, if it is too far for voters, provisions allow for more than one center to be designated. No polling station will have more than one thousand voters.
The work at a polling station concludes after the voting ends and the ballot boxes are inventoried in the presence of representatives from all political parties. Following this, the Election Officer must transport and submit the election materials, including the ballot boxes, to the District Election Officer’s office.
Spokesperson Bhattarai states that the responsibility of the staff and security personnel deployed to the polling station is fulfilled only after they receive the election materials, conduct the polling, and hand over the ballot boxes to the Election Officer. He says, “Until that time, the staff and the accompanying security personnel must remain together and ensure the polling process is carried out.”
