Visakhapatnam Collector, Police Commissioner thank all stakeholders for smooth, peaceful conduct of general elections in district

Visakhapatnam Collector, Police Commissioner thank all stakeholders for smooth, peaceful conduct of general elections in district

District Collector A. Mallikarjuna has commended the officials and staff of all departments, police personnel and the media for their cooperation in the smooth and peaceful conduct of the general elections in the district.

Dr. Mallikarjuna and Police Commissioner A. Ravi Shankar interacted with media persons at the Collectorate here on Friday.

The Collector said that over 35,000 employees were involved in the conduct of the elections. Many of them had worked without adequate rest for several weeks at a stretch. Despite the best efforts, there could have been shortcomings here and there, but they were promptly set right with the cooperation of media persons, who were reporting them from the ground, he said.

Right from the preparation of electoral rolls and revision of rolls, the newspapers and TV channels had published/telecast several articles on the shortcomings, and that had helped the district administration in taking up course correction, Dr. Mallikarjuna said.

The Police Commissioner said that he was involved in the conduct of five general elections in the last 30 years. “These are one of the most peaceful elections, and I thank all those associated with the conduct of the elections. The Election Commission of India (ECI) and AP Chief Electoral Officer were monitoring the situation. Thanks to the scrolls on TV from time to time, we could alert our men on the ground and prevent situations from going out of control,” he said.

In a charged atmosphere during elections, even minor issues could be blown out of proportion and result in the situation going out of control. The timely information through media, helped the police in taking prompt action. The EC and election observers had appreciated the district administration for the peaceful conduct of elections, he said.

Modern amenities were provided and several development activities were initiated at the King George Hospital (KGH) at a cost of ₹18 crore with CSR funds from corporate companies like Coromandel Fertilizers Limited, Divis Laboratories and AMNS. Similarly, social welfare hostels were renovated at a cost of ₹10.82 crore, Dr. Mallikarjuna said.