New Delhi: Ahead of the 18th Lok Sabha elections, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has issued a heatwave advisory, days after the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) warned that the country is likely to witness extreme temperatures and severe heatwaves from March-June.
The Lok Sabha elections will be held between April 19 and June 1, across seven phases. The poll panel in its letter to the Chief Electoral Officers of all the states and Union Territories has listed Do's and Don'ts issued by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to minimise the impact during the heat wave and to prevent serious ailment or death because of heat stroke.
The poll body has asked Chief Electoral Officers to see to it that all polling stations have separate exits and entrances. The polling booths must be set up on the ground floor of a building to expedite the aged and disabled voters and that there must be sufficient provision for drinking water inside the booths.
"The Commission directs the CEOs/DEOs to make a complete gap analysis of AMF at each polling station and work with state authorities to permanently provide these AMFs at the polling stations. It also provides facilities for voters to cast their votes conveniently. The AMF includes the sector officers to visit polling stations/locations to assess their worth", the letter from the ECI read.
"The polling stations should be set up on the ground floor of a building to facilitate voting for aged and disabled elector", it said. It also added that there should be arrangement of tap facility for drinking water.
On the availability of separate toilets, it said that "There should also be separate toilets in sufficient numbers for male and female voters etc."
"During summer, every polling party shall be supplied with Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS) for their own use as well as for any voter needing the same due to heat-stroke. A hand-bill on 'Dos and Don'ts' in case of heat stroke may be prepared and supplied to each of the polling parties," it wrote.
The IMD in its weather release earlier this month predicted above-normal maximum temperatures for most parts of the country. From March to May, the above-normal number of heatwave days is likely over most parts of the country except northeast India, the western Himalayan region, the southwest peninsula and the west coast, the IMD said, while adding that the country is slated to experience above-normal minimum temperatures.
The weather body had also predicted an increased number of heatwaves across the country including in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh amongst others.
For the last few years, India has been witnessing a surge in the intensity and frequency of heatwaves and thus it also impacts the Rabi crops apart from health issues. The severity of this summer is also expected to be high because of the impact of the El-Nino.
It refers to a global climate phenomenon characterised by warming of the equatorial Pacific Ocean.
