‘Total of 890 requests made for helicopter & helipad use’
Kolkata: According to the data provided by the office of the state CEO (Chief Electoral Officer), a total of 890 requests for helicopter and helipad use were made during the Lok Sabha elections of which they issued 669 permissions.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has made the maximum use of helicopters and helipads in the Lok Sabha elections in Bengal that concluded on Saturday with the seventh phase of polls.
According to data, the TMC made 676 applications related to the use of helicopters and helipads, of which the poll watchdog gave a nod for 521.
The BJP made requests for 183 similar uses and was granted 124 permissions. The Congress as well as the Independent made 2 applications each and were given the nod in all cases. The CPI(M) and its allies did not seek any such permission.
“A total of 890 requests for helicopter and helipad use reached our office and we issued 669 permissions,” a senior official of the state CEO office said. Bengal is among the leading states when it comes to campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections. There have been more than one lakh meetings, rallies and similar political programmes in connection with the Lok Sabha polls.
TMC chairperson Mamata Banerjee travelled throughout the state and reached out to the electorate by campaigning in all the 42 Parliamentary constituencies in support of her party candidates. The same holds true for the party’s national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee too.
The total number of applications for political meetings and rallies received by the poll panel from different political parties were 1,96, 276 of which permission was given for hosting 95,000 programmes. As many as 10,688 political campaigns were held in West Midnapore — the highest in the state. North 24-Parganas is second in this list with 10,245 political meetings being held.