By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: The Election Commission on Tuesday conducted a meeting to review the Covid protocols and preparedness for the coming elections in five states.
Sources said that the Commission deliberated upon strict Covid guidelines in the backdrop of high Covid cases in the Country. Changes are likely in the existing guidelines for the poll-bound states, with the protocols set to become more stringent.
Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sushil Chandra chaired the meeting which was attended by other officials. After assessing the Covid situation in the five poll-bound states, the Election Commission asked them to step up the inoculation drive and to ensure that the personnel to be deployed on election duty are “double vaccinated”.
In a recent letter to the chief secretaries of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Manipur and Punjab, the EC has also reminded them that polling personnel come under the category of frontline workers and are eligible for the “precaution dose” of the Covid vaccines, sources said.
