Our Correspondent
Imphal, Feb. 17 (EMN): A total of 265 candidates including 173 in first phase and 92 in second phase will be contesting the Manipur Assembly elections on February 28 and March 5.
There are a total of 15 women candidates in the first phase of elections, while there are just two women candidates in the second phase.
More than 80 per cent (18,039) arms were deposited so far against the 59.76 per cent in the 2017 Assembly Elections.
A total of 328 FIRs were registered from August 1, 2022 including 60 cases of Narcotics, Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
An official informed that, ‘Adequate number of central paramilitary forces will be deployed in the election. Central Armed Police Force are already deployed and are being effectively used in area domination and in vulnerable pockets/hamlets, as a step towards confidence building amongst the electorate’.
With the receding number of Covid cases in the state, the election authority has decided to revise the guidelines. For Outdoor physical meeting, 50% of the capacity of designated open ground or as fixed by District Election Officers as per requirement of social distancing norms, whichever is less, subject to compliance of all conditions of State Disaster Management Authority.
According to official sources, 69.44% and 54.41% of the electors were vaccinated with single dose and second dose respectively, while around 21,817 trained polling personnel were completely vaccinated.
Altogether, 13,203 voters have been added to the electoral roll during the continuous updation with the total electors on the final electoral roll for the election now standing at 20, 48,169.