Kathmandu: The Election Commission has proposed to the government to hold the House of Representatives (HoR) and provincial elections in a single phase on November 18.
EC office-bearers met Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba on Wednesday and proposed the date for the polls. During the meeting, the commission also briefed the prime minister regarding the estimated expenditures of Rs 10 billion for holding the polls.
EC Spokesperson Shaligram Sharma Paudel said that the constitutional bodies presented the estimated election cost considering the current market prices.
The EC had spent Rs 7.8 billion in the earlier HoR and provincial polls. The commission said that the budget needs to be increased as voters have been added after the latest polls. The budget will increase in the same proportion for polling stations and booths and ballot papers, the commission estimates.
The commission states that expenditure will increase due to the need for additional materials and manpower to make voter education technology-friendly, comprehensive, and effective.
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