Bihar Polls: First major election to be held in the middle of the worldwide coronavirus crisis.
The Bihar election next month will be the biggest voting exercise in the world to be held in the time of coronavirus. The Election Commission announced a series of steps to protect against infection during campaigning and voting. Chief Election Commission Sunil Arora said this was part of the "new normal" in the global pandemic.
Here are the key changes:
- Polling hours have been increased by one hour. Voting from 7 am to 6 pm instead of the usual 5 pm.
- Covid infected persons and virus suspects will vote separately
- Those in quarantine can cast their votes at the end of voting time
- All physical contact has been prohibited during the campaign
- The Election Commission has a list of grounds available for public gathering with distancing