Dibrugarh: With the announcement of the Assam assembly election dates expected at any moment, state chief electoral officer Anurag Goel visited Dibrugarh on Friday to take stock of the district administration’s poll preparedness.Goel, accompanied by Dibrugarh DC and district election officer Bikram Kairi, inspected Dibrugarh Polytechnic, which has been designated as the venue for the strong room and vote counting for all six assembly constituencies falling under Dibrugarh district — Lahowal, Dibrugarh, Duliajan, Naharkatia, Tingkhong and Khowang. The facility will serve as the nerve centre of the electoral process in the district, handling the storage of electronic voting machines and the final counting of votes.During the visit, Goel held detailed discussions with officials regarding a range of infrastructural arrangements, including the strong room, the distribution and receiving centre for polling materials, and the counting centre. Emphasis was placed on ensuring that all logistical requirements are met well before the formal announcement of poll dates.The CEO specifically scrutinised the PWD (Building) department’s arrangements, emphasising that the strong rooms — where EVM are stored — must be foolproof and under 24/7 surveillance.Dibrugarh SSP Abhijit Gurav, co-DC of Khowang Jayant Charan, co-DC of Tingkhong Parikshit Phukan, Dibrugarh Municipal Corporation commissioner Jay Vikas, election officer Pranjal Gogoi and officials from the Public Works Department (Buildings) and other concerned departments were also present during the visit.
