In Punjab, for the first time, persons who are not able to cast their votes because of being posted at faraway places, will be able to do so by proxy voting. This was announced by the Chief Election Commissioner of India (CEC) Dr S.Y. Quraishi during a press conference in Ludhiana, last evening. He said this practice of proxy voting had already been introduced in some states and has proved successful. As a result, the polling percentage has considerably improved. Regarding the issue of paid news as was raised by some political parties during an interaction with the team of the the ECI, Dr. Qureshi said a four member committee would be constituted to scan any such item before getting it published.