EC to review poll preparedness in city on Feb 15

SHILLONG: The Election Commission headed by chief election commissioner Om Prakash Rawat will hold poll meeting for two days in the city from Thursday to discuss the preparedness of the state.
The election commissioners, Sunil Arora and Ashok Lavasa, will accompany Rawat.
Last December, before his retirement, then chief election commissioner AK Joti and the election commissioners had held meetings with the poll officials in the state.
Briefing reporters on Monday, Chief Electoral Officer Frederick Kharkongor said the EC team will discuss all matters related to the February 27 polls after their visit to Nagaland.
The central team will also meet Chief Secretary Y Tsering and senior government and police officials.
The EC will also hold discussion with the income tax officials to check cash flow during the polls.
CS level meet
Later, based on the suggestion of the EC, the Meghalaya chief secretary will hold video conferencing with his Assam counterpart seeking help from the neighbouring state for the smooth conduct of polls.
The meeting is aimed at ensuring law and order in the border areas and also to have easy access to Assam to reach several polling stations in Meghalaya.
There are 172 polling stations in Assam-Meghalaya border and the polling parties will have to cross Assam to enter Meghalaya polling stations.
The total number of polling stations all over Meghalaya is 3,083 while the number of all-woman polling stations is 67.
While there are 633 vulnerable polling stations, the critical ones are 315 and 75 are both vulnerable and critical.
IB alerted
The election authorities have also asked the police to keep vigil at the international border ahead of the polls as Meghalaya shares 443 km border with Bangladesh. Besides police, BSF has intensified patrolling.
The Election Department does not expect any poll-related violence on the international border.