UP polls: Parties have urged to hold elections on time, CEC says

The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sushil Chandra in a press conference on Thursday said that political parties in Uttar Pradesh have urged the poll panel for holding the elections on time.

Voting will be held from 8 am to 6 pm on the day of polling and the final list of voters will be released on January 5, he said.

The CEC said that there will be no delay in the upcoming polls. "Representatives of all political parties met us and told us that elections should be conducted on time following all Covid-19 protocols," he said.


"VVPATs will be installed at all voting booths. Live webcasting facilities will be available at around 1 lakh voting booths to ensure transparency in the election process," he added. The Election Commission will reach the doorsteps of people above 80 years of age, those with disabilities and COVID-affected persons, the CEC said.

"In view of the increase in the number of voters and also the prevailing pandemic condition, we have decided to set up 11,000 more polling booths to ensure that there is no crowding. With this, there will also be an increase in the number of polling personnel. We are also increasing the polling time by one hour across the state to prevent crowding at polling stations," he said.

The number of voters per booth has been reduced to 1,250 instead of the earlier 1,500 to ensure social distancing. The Election Commission of India had held a meeting with senior health ministry officials over the rise in Omicron cases on Monday. The staff deployed at voting booths across the State will be fully vaccinated, the CEC added.