KATHMANDU: Prime Minister Sushila Karki has directed the concerned authorities to make full preparations for conducting the election to the House of Representatives (HoR) 2026 in an impartial and peaceful atmosphere.

The Prime Minister of the election government arrived here today to assess the overall election atmosphere, including preparations and security arrangements in Lumbini Province, and gave this directive during a province-level security meeting.

As voting under the HoR polls is taking place on March 5, the Prime Minister stressed that it is the shared responsibility of all concerned stakeholders to contribute to concluding the elections successfully, Chief of Lumbini Province Government, Krishna Prasad Kapri, told RSS after the meeting.

The province-level integrated security meeting was held at the Mid-West Division Headquarters in Butwal. The Prime Minister directed the district-based security committees to identify election-related challenges on time, prepare a security strategy accordingly, and implement it, Secretary Kapri said.

The district bodies have been urged to identify challenges related to polling stations, classify such centers according to the nature of the challenges they face, and implement an integrated security plan with the participation of the Nepali Army, Nepal Police, and the Armed Police Force.

The Prime Minister was briefed about the security plans formulated by 12 districts across the province in view of the elections. NA Divisional Chief Himmat Bahadur Bista, Nepal Police Province Chief DIG Bhupendra Bahadur Khatri, the Armed Police Force (APF) AIG, and chief district officers from various districts apprised the meeting of the status of election preparations and security plans in view of the election.

According to the briefing, polling stations across the province have been categorized as most sensitive, sensitive, and general polling centers, and preparations have been made accordingly. As the Secretary said, the Prime Minister’s visit to the province and her directives to conclude the election impartially and peacefully have encouraged the concerned authorities to carry out their duties with greater confidence.

The meeting identified the open border system across 26 electoral constituencies in the Terai plains as one of the major challenges for the election. A total stretch of 414 kilometers, from West Nawalparasi to Bardiya, lies along the open border in the province.

Similarly, it was assessed that there may be difficulties in communication and information gathering in Rukum East, the province’s only mountainous district.

The meeting also discussed potential challenges related to access, geographical diversity, and religious and ethnic factors that could affect the electoral process, it was said.#nepal #rss