The Election Commission of India (ECI) has enforced a seven point code of conduct for all parties in the campaign of Loksabha election in the matter for availing helicopter services.
The commission directed the state not to make any discrimination in providing helicopter service between the ruling party and the opposition. The money to be paid as fare of the helicopter service must be paid up by the concerned candidate or his party and no user shall be given any subsidy for the helicopter service.
As per norms hiring charge of a helicopter per hour will be Rs 70,400 while all rules and regulations on hiring charge shall remain the same for all users and shall have to be provided based on first-come-first-serve principle.
The instruction made it clear if more than one application is filed at one and the same time, the decision on the service to be provided to which applicant shall be done on the basis of lottery. No service will be provided beyond three days in a row to any applicant, candidate or party and the applications for availing helicopter service will have to be filed in a special and prescribed format.
To ensure peaceful election, ECI has directed its state machineries to deploy central security forces considering vulnerability besides tightening of security arrangements across the state to prevent activities of the miscreants before the election and has already rounded up nearly three hundred suspected miscreants.
As a preventive measure they are holding regular patrolling in the areas and fixed posts also have been set up in areas which are considered sensitive. However, no major incidents of violence have been reported from any part of the state but there are many allegations of terrorizing and intimidation.
The ECI said nomination process has started on March 18 last in West Tripura and from yesterday in East Tripura reserved constituency. There is no report of any violence so far from any part of the state. (UNI)
