THIS EX-GRATIA AMOUNT WILL BE IN ADDITION TO THE COMPASSIONATE COMPENSATION PROVIDED BY OTHER EMPLOYERS.
(MOREPIC1) Face2News/Chandigarh
The Chief Electoral Officer shared that, similarly, in cases where death occurs due to other reasons while on duty, Rs. 15 lakh will be provided. In cases where an employee is permanently disabled due to involvement of extremist or unsocial elements, Rs. 15 lakh will be given, and in the case of grievous injury resulting in permanent disability, like loss of limb, eye sight, etc., Rs. 7.5 lakh will be provided as financial assistance to the families.
Sh. Pankaj Agarwal mentioned that this ex-gratia amount, provided during election duty, will be in addition to the compensation paid by the Ministry of Home Affairs, the state government, or any other employer. He further shared that the election duty period will be considered from the date of election announcements to the date of results (inclusive of both days).
He informed that in each of the cases, whether deceased or injured/disabled, it will be the responsibility of the DEO and SP to initiate the process of claim for compensation. This process should be initiated within 10 days of the incident. The Chief Electoral Officer's office must ensure that the case is resolved within one month, said. Sh. Pankaj Agarwal.
He informed that the Commission provides for compensation of ex-gratia payment to the kin of polling/security personnel in case of death or grievous injuries arising out of and in the course of election duty and include all personnel deployed in all types of election related duties, all security personnel under CAPFS, SAPS, State Police, Home Guards, and any private person like drivers, cleaners, etc., hired for election duty, BEL/ECIL engineers who are engaged in First Level Checking (FLC), EVM commissioning, Poll Day and Counting Day duty.
(SUBHEAD)It would be reasonable to consider a person on election duty as soon as he/she leaves residence/office to report for any election related work including training and until he/she reaches back to his/her residence/office after performance of election related duty. If any mishap takes place during this period, it should be treated as having occurred on election duty subject to condition that there should be a causal connection between occurrence of death/injury and the election duty.
The Chief Electoral Officer said that Elections are a fundamental characteristic of democracy, and involve strenuous activities that are carried out by election machinery consisting of officials and staff from various departments. These personnel perform challenging tasks, to the extent of risking their lives with the commitment to ensure free and fair conduct of elections. Acknowledging the contribution made by them, the Commission provides for compensation in case of death in the form of ex-gratia to the next of kin of the deceased personnel or assistance for the personnel himself in case of grievous injury resulting into permanent disability.
Medical Facilities and Other Public Amenities for Polling Staff to Be Ensured
Sh. Pankaj Agarwal directed that all District Election Officers ensure the provision of healthcare, first-aid, and other medical facilities for polling personnel at training centres, dispatch, and receiving centres. An ambulance equipped with doctors and paramedical staff must also be arranged.