As part of the preparation for the 13th national parliamentary election, the Election Commission (EC) Secretariat plans to start the procurement of essentials papers and printing materials early to avoid last-minute delays.
The EC officials on Tuesday sat in a meeting with officials from the Department of Printing and Publications at the Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital to assess demands for election materials, budget estimates and current stocks, UNB reports.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, EC senior secretary Akhtar Ahmed said the preparation works are being planned so that the electoral preparation is not delayed.
“The things are being organised to ensure election preparations are not delayed. They (officials at the meeting) said it usually takes three to four months to complete the tasks – from paper procurement to printing ones,” he said.
According to EC officials, the parliamentary election requires the printing of 21 types of forms, 17 types of packets, five kinds of ID cards, the code of conduct, symbol posters, election operation manuals, training guides and other materials.
The meeting stressed the need for completing and storing these printed items by September ahead of the next general election.
To meet this timeline, EC needs to start the procurement by May next.
After the announcement of the election schedule, nomination papers and symbol allocations are finalised, and the ballot papers with candidates’ names and symbols need to be printed and distributed across the country.
During the 12th parliamentary election, the EC procured approximately 161,000 reams of paper, costing over Tk 33 crore.
This time, the requirement is expected to rise to at least 170,000 reams and the cost is likely to increase to around Tk 36 crore.
Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said Tuesday’s meeting focused on estimating the paper requirements for the upcoming election and budgeting for it.
The meeting also discussed the disposal of printed materials still stored at the BG Press in the case of quality decline.
“If some of those materials have deteriorated, they will need to be disposed of properly,” he added.
The representatives from BG Press were also present at the meeting.
