Now, midday meal cooks to dish out food for staff on poll duty

BHATINDA: This time the government employees put on the polling duty will enjoy the hospitality of the Punjab education department during the state assembly elections. The Election Commission (EC) has directed the state education department to provide the polling staff three meals a day to be prepared by the midday meal cook. Earlier, the polling agents of the parties or candidates used to offer food and refreshments to the staff manning the polling stations and smaller booths.
To ensure that parties do not influence the government staff deputed on election duty, a day prior and on the day of voting by offering sumptuous meals, the commission has directed the education department to make arrangements to prepare meals for the staff.
The district education officers (DEOs) have been directed to ask the midday meal cooks to prepare meals for the polling staff. The commission has asked a teacher at every school, where polling booths are to be set up, to supervise the preparation by midday meal cooks at the schools.
The polling staff will be provided dinner on the night of February 3, breakfast and lunch on polling day apart from tea. The midday meal cooks will be given Rs 150 for feeding every official on poll duty. The teacher deputed to oversee cooking arrangements will ensure that cooks arrange ration from the market and not use the provisions meant for school students.
In a village where more than one polling stations are to be set up, the booth level officer (BLO) will be deputed to provide meals to staff from school.
During the last elections, some private agencies were hired to provide meals and polling staff had complained of substandard and cold meals provided to them. This time the poll panel has also directed the district officials to count the expenses of political parties for setting up their kiosks outside the booths.
When contacted, Punjab chief electoral officer (CEO) V K Singh said, “Earlier some religious organizations or political parties used to provide meals to the polling staff. To discourage that trend the EC has ordered this new arrangement. The cooks will be duly paid for it.”
Bathinda DEO (secondary education) Khushbir Singh said, “According to the directions of the EC, one teacher at every school will take care of the food being cooked for the polling staff. We have got lists of teachers in every cluster and cooks have been directed to provide hot meals.”
Teacher Harbhajan Singh, who had worked as presiding officer at booths in previous polls, said earlier meals were provided by various parties, but the polling staff wanted their own arrangement. He said the initiative of the Election Commission was a welcome step.
As per the directions of EC, polling staff would be provided dal, a seasonal vegetable and chapatis in dinner at 7 pm on February 3; two paranthas, pickle and tea for breakfast at 6.30 am on February 4; and pluses, seasonal vegetable and chapatis for lunch at 1.30 pm. In addition, tea would be served twice in the day at 11 am and 4 am on the day of voting.