IMPHAL: The first of the election officials’ teams, accompanied by police personnel and electronic voting machines, was airlifted to the remote polling stations in Pherzawl district of Manipur, which shares borders with Assam, Mizoram and Myanmar, on Tuesday (April 13).
This district comprises two assembly constituencies: Tipaimukh (Scheduled Tribes) and Thanlon (ST), with a total of 34,897 eligible voters.
All 78 polling stations within these two assembly segments are scheduled to vote for Lok Sabha elections in the second phase for the Outer Manipur Lok Sabha seat reserved for scheduled tribes, slated for April 26.
This upcoming election marks Pherzawl district’s debut in organizing elections as an independent district.
Established on December 8, 2016, Pherzawl district was carved out of Churachandpur district in Manipur.
The Pherzawl district election office dispatched the initial batch of polling teams from the Dispersal Centre at Peace Ground, Tuibong, on Tuesday.
The teams assigned to oversee 16 remote polling stations under the Tipaimukh assembly constituency, including Chingmun, Doltang and Suangphumun, among others, were transported via an Indian Air Force (IAF) chopper from the helipad of 36 Assam Rifles.
It is worth noting that these polling stations are situated more than 260 km away from the Dispersal Centre and face challenges of poor road connectivity.
Additionally, teams designated for Upper Kharkhuplien, Lungthulien, Kangreng, and 12 other distant polling stations commenced their journeys to their respective locations by road.
Previously, the strong room situated at the DC Office complex was opened, and the EVMs were relocated to the dispersal center for distribution to the polling teams, under the supervision of District Election Officials and representatives from political parties.
On Wednesday, the polling teams for Thanlon and the remaining teams for Tipaimukh in Manipur are scheduled to be dispatched via road.
Manipur encompasses 60 assembly constituencies, of which 32 are part of the Inner Manipur Parliamentary Constituency, which conducted elections simultaneously with the 15 Outer Manipur Parliamentary Constituencies on April 19, during the first phase.
The remaining 13 Assembly segments of the Outer Manipur PC, including Tipaimukh and Thanlon, will proceed to polls in the second phase on April 26.
The Outer Manipur PC is set to witness a competitive four-cornered contest, featuring candidates from the INC, NPF, as well as independent contenders.
