The field level task for preparing the voter list across the country will be completed in phases while the voter-listing task in Khulna City Corporation and eight municipality areas will start in this month.

According to the EC's roadmap announced on July 15, the task for preparing the voter list will be completed in October next year for holding the stalled ninth parliamentary election in December 2008.

The EC Secretariat and its field level offices across the country have started making all out preparations to begin the task, which is expected to start on a large scale sometime in September-October.

The field level task for preparing the voter list in RCC area was earlier scheduled to begin on August 5, but it was delayed by a week as the chief adviser changed his decision to inaugurate the task due to the floods. The reason behind delay of beginning the task was also absence of a new law, which was made on last Thursday.

Now that the field task for preparing the voter list in RCC area has begun, the EC is expecting that Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed will visit the area on August 14.

Our staff correspondent from Rajshahi reports: Turnout of aspirant voters especially women was quite high at most of the registration centres in the morning on the first day of the task.

Many prospective voters, who went to the centres to have their photographs and fingerprint taken for the voter list, however complained of troubles and sufferings due to inadequate facilities at the registration centres.

Tired of waiting in long queues, many left for home.

The officials concerned however said they were trying to gear up the task at the registration centres so that those visiting the centres do not have to wait for long to have their photographs and fingerprint taken.

The voter listing work was going on at 37 centres out of a total of 101 in all 30 wards in RCC on the first day. The task is scheduled to be completed early in September, listing about three lakh voters.

Earlier on July 29, field level tasks like collection of particulars of prospective voters started with enumerators' door-to-door visit.

Now, from yesterday, the prospective voters started to visit the voter registration centres to have their photographs and fingerprints taken.

Meanwhile, election commissioners Muhammed Sohul Hussain and Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain yesterday visited Comilla municipality area to monitor the preparation for beginning voter listing in this month.

The EC, which was reconstituted on February 4, announced on April 5 an 18-month timeframe for preparing a voter list with photographs.

WORK IN RCC AREA

Al Markajul Islami As-Salafi Dakhil Madrasa founded by jailed militant kingpin and chief of Ahle Hadith Andolon, Bangladesh Asadullah Al Galib has been made a registration centre, our staff correspondent from Rajshahi adds.

Rajshahi election officials said the madrasa was a vote centre during RCC elections in 2003, but it was not selected during general elections of 2001. Galib's militant link was uncovered in 2003.

Rajshahi district election officer Sayed Mohammad Musa, however, told The Daily Star, "The election office has no relation with any activities of the places selected as registration centres...We selected the madrasa as it was a vote centre during the RCC elections."

At the madrasa centre, women were seen standing for hours in a long queue.

"I came here at 8:30am as voter listing was scheduled to begin at 9:00am. But for faults in the system, it started hours later," said Shabana Khatun, a 65-year-old woman from Boro Bongram.

"I am facing troubles standing for hours under the sun in this long queue," she said at 11:00am.

Hasina Banu, 27, Samsad Begum, 22, Chameli, 22, and Hira, 23, of Bharalipara also complained of the delayed process. They however expressed their enthusiasm about the digitised system.

"I came here without having breakfast, but still standing in the queue as I think the voter listing is important," said Chameli.

Afroza Akhtar, a data entry operator at the centre, said her laptop was running at a slower speed and she had to take some time for perfection in the work. "In two hours, I completed listing of 12 voters."

"Several voters expressed their doubt as their fingers were not inked for fingerprints in the digitised system," she said.

Nasim, another data entry operator, was seen sitting idle before his laptop as the machine went out of order just after completing four voters.

"My photo looked dark as it was taken in scanty light," said Ashraf Hossain who was coming out of Upashahar Degree College centre at around 12:00noon.

Power cuts also cause wastage of time, said Ashraf's wife Rubina Begum.

Ashraf said an hour later that the data entry operator called him three times for corrections as the operator made mistakes, including one regarding Ashraf's name.

Laila Haque, a housewife who went to the centre with her 3-year-old daughter, however, expressed happiness saying that she would be able to cast her own vote.