No candidates, agents will be allowed inside counting halls without negative COVID-19 report: Election Commission

As per the latest Election Commission guidelines, there should be a sufficient number of personal protective equipment (PPE) kits for counting agents and candidates.

New Delhi: The Election Commission on Wednesday (April 28) made it mandatory for candidates and their agents to show negative RT-PCR test reports or complete vaccination reports to enter the counting centers, according to the latest result-day guidelines issued by the EC. Counting starts at 8 am on May 2. 

It said that no candidates or their agents will be allowed inside counting halls without a negative coronavirus report. The guidelines further said that candidates or their agents who have received both the doses of COVID-19 vaccine can also enter the counting hall on May 2 when votes for Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Puducherry, and Tamil Nadu will be counted.

According to the EC guidelines, no public gathering outside the counting venue will be allowed during the process of counting. "No candidates or agents will be allowed inside the counting hall without undergoing RT-PCR/RAT test or without having two doses of vaccination against Covid-19 and will have to produce negative RT-PCR report or RAT report or vaccination reports within 48 hours of start of counting," the guideline read.

As per the latest guidelines, there should be a sufficient number of personal protective equipment (PPE) kits for counting agents and candidates. It said, "The counting agents' sitting arrangement shall be made in such a way that between 2 counting agents 1 agent shall be in PPE." 

The counting hall, according to the EC, should be sufficiently big to maintain social distancing and should have proper ventilation, windows, exhaust fan as per the available protocol of the State Disaster Management Authority.

The counting centers should be disinfected before, during, and after the counting, while sealed outer boxes of electronic voting machines and paper trail machines should also be disinfected.

The number of counting tables to be allowed in a counting hall should be as per the size of the hall and keeping in view safety norms prescribed for Covid- 19, the Commission said.

The counting of votes of a constituency may be considered at 3-4 halls by appointing additional assistant returning officers, the EC said, adding the staff and security personnel deployed for counting will be provided with face masks and shields, sanitisers, and gloves. 

(With Agency Inputs)