Guwahati: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has substantially increased the remuneration of presiding officers, polling personnel, counting staff, micro-observers and several other officials engaged in election duty ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in five states.
The revised compensation structure comes ahead of the polls scheduled next month in Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry.
Officials said the enhancement is aimed at ensuring more adequate compensation for personnel who work long and demanding hours during the election process.
Under the revised rates, presiding officers will now receive Rs 500 per day, up from Rs 350, or Rs 2,000 for the full assignment.
The daily allowance for polling officers has been raised from Rs 250 to Rs 400, with a one-time payment fixed at Rs 1,600.
For counting assistants, the remuneration has increased from Rs 250 to Rs 450 per day, or Rs 1,350 as a one-time payment.
Fourth-class staff deployed at polling stations will now receive Rs 350 per day, compared to Rs 200 earlier, amounting to Rs 1,400 for the assignment.
Personnel working in call centres or control rooms will now be entitled to a one-time allowance of Rs 1,000.
The revision also covers support teams engaged in video surveillance, video monitoring, accounting control rooms and call centre operations.
For Class I and II officials, the one-time remuneration has been increased from Rs 1,200 to Rs 2,000, while for certain Class I personnel, it has been doubled from Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000.
The allowance for micro-observers has also been raised significantly, from Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000 as a one-time payment.
In a notable increase, the daily tiffin allowance for polling staff, police personnel, mobile teams and home guards has been raised from Rs 150 to Rs 500.
Senior election officials have also been brought under the revised pay structure. Deputy District Election Officers will now be entitled to at least one month’s basic pay as honorarium.
For personnel of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), gazetted officers serving for up to 15 days will receive Rs 4,000, up from Rs 2,500. For longer deployments, they will be paid Rs 2,000 per week, compared to Rs 1,250 earlier.
Similarly, inspectors, sub-inspectors, assistant sub-inspectors and equivalent ranks will now receive Rs 3,000 for duties up to 15 days and Rs 1,500 per week for extended assignments, against the earlier Rs 2,000 and Rs 1,000 respectively.
Officials said the enhanced remuneration reflects the Commission’s recognition of the critical role played by election personnel in ensuring the smooth and fair conduct of polls.