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Bhubaneswar: The BJD is ready for early polls said party Supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in reply to media representatives at the State Secretariat here today.
"The BJD is always ready for elections. If there is an early election, as I have said, we are always ready for it," said Patnaik.
Earlier on Wednesday, Election Commissioner of India Om Prakash Rawat had informed that the Election Commission of India (ECI) will be completely prepared by the end of 2018 to hold Parliament and Assembly elections simultaneously.
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Rawat has also said there is a need for amendment in the law for conducting the elections simultaneously and it is the responsibility of the Central government. He further informed that in total 40 lakh Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines are needed to conduct the parallel polls.
The Central government has granted Rs 15,400 crore to the ECI for the EVMs and VVPAT machines. The import process for the machines has started, added Rawat.