Printing of ballot papers begins, Tk33cr spent so far
About Tk33 crore has been spent so far as per the budget allocated for printing ballot papers, said EC
Ballot papers for the upcoming national election are being printed in three government presses, Election Commission (EC) Additional Secretary Ashok Kumar Debnath said on Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters at his office in Agargaon's Nirbachon Bhaban, he said, "We want to complete the ballot paper printing by 31 December."
The Bangladesh Government Press has three presses where ballot papers are being printed in full swing, he said.
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The ballots for about 40 constituencies where there are cases or pending cases against candidates will be printed last, he added.
"The party symbols were allotted on Monday. We [the EC] have received the candidate list for 300 seats. Accordingly, our ballot paper printing activities with symbols have already begun," said Ashok.
Regarding the budget allocated for printing, Ashok Kumar said about Tk33 crore has been spent so far.
Stating that there is no specific budget for these activities, he said, "As per the BG Press's demand, Tk33 crore has been given initially for their purchase of paper. Ballot papers will be printed according to the number of voters."
He also said the ballot papers will be sent to districts from 25 December.
The papers would reach the returning officer of each district in advance as a lot more has to be done as per due process on the polling day, he added.
Regarding the security of transporting ballot papers, Ashok further said, "Security is the responsibility of law enforcers. We have asked them to provide security."
Earlier on 18 December, the EC decided to send ballot papers to polling centers on the morning of the Election Day, 7 January 2024.
It outlined security arrangements for the transportation and distribution of essential election materials.
It said, "Security arrangements will be made for the transportation and distribution of election materials, and ballot papers will be sent to the polling stations on the morning of the polling day."
