Kendrapara: Around 70 government employees, including teachers, who had filed applications with the Collector–cum-District Election Officer seeking exemption from poll duty on medical grounds, underwent medical check-ups Saturday by a five-member team of doctors from the District Headquarters Hospital at the Collectorate conference hall.
Around 150 government employees, who were going to be deputed as polling officers had filed applications before the Collector seeking exemption from poll duty on medical grounds and had skipped the training for presiding and polling officers.
Although reminders were sent to them to join poll duty, most of them submitted medical certificates before the District Election Officer.
Collector Dasarathy Satapathy directed the 150 applicants to come with their medical reports for checkups by a medical board of five DHH doctors at the Collectorate at 10 am Saturday to ascertain the genuineness of the medical certificate produced by the employees.
But only 70 employees, including teachers, came for the checkup before medical board. Only 33 government employees of the 70 were recommended exemption by the medical board, after a thorough examination.
37 government employees who had medical certificates for seeking exemption from poll duty, were found fit by the medical board.
117 employees, including the 80 applicants who were absent for checkups, are going to be deputed for poll duty.
The District Election Officer is going to serve a final notice to the 117 government employees to join poll duty, said Collector Satapathy.
This is the first time in the district an Election Officer is ordering medical checkups to identify employees who had submitted fake medical certificates to skip poll duty.
During the last elections many government employees were found campaigning for their favourite candidates after skipping poll duty.
PNN