296 Nodal Officers across J&K trained to ensure fair play

Jammu, Aug 22: To enhance the skills of its election machinery at the district and assembly constituency level during the upcoming assembly polls, the office of the Chief Electoral Officer J&K conducted a training programme for 296 Nodal Officers across J&K, which concluded on Thursday.

Conducted under the supervision of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), J&K, Pandurang K Pole, the programme trained the Nodal Officers for the effective implementation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), Media Certification and Monitoring (MCM), monitoring of paid and fake news, social media apps, and for Election Expenditure Monitoring (EEM) at district and Assembly Constituency (AC) level in both divisions of J&K.

The 296 Nodal Officers, including 162 in the Jammu division were trained in the physical mode during the programme being conducted in the training hall of J&K CEO Office at Nirvachan Bhawan, Rail Head Complex, Jammu.

Similarly, 134 Nodal Officers from the Kashmir division were trained during the training programme being held in online mode from the office of J&K CEO in Jammu.

Addressing the trainees, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) exhorted upon the Nodal Officers to work in tandem to ensure that the provisions of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) are implemented in toto during the assembly polls and EEM is done effectively in true spirit so that the transparency and fairness of the electoral process are visible on the ground and a level playing field is provided to the stakeholders.

“The training provided to the Nodal Officers will prove to be crucial in upholding the integrity of the electoral processes and smooth conduct of the upcoming assembly polls in J&K,” the CEO said.

During the training programme, the national-level master trainers from India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM) delivered lectures to all the trainee officers on topics related to MCC, MCM, paid news, social media apps, and Election Expenditure Monitoring.

Additionally, the officials of the Expenditure Division of the Election Commission of India (ECI) gave a full session on the Election Seizure Management System to the trainee officers in Jammu and the same theme of training was also followed in the Kashmir division.