Security, surveillance in place for counting of votes tomorrow
Ludhiana: District election officer Himanshu Jain Saturday said elaborate arrangements are in place for the smooth counting of votes polled for the Ludhiana West bypoll. At sharp 7 am on June 23, the counting of votes and postal ballots will commence in the presence of election observers, candidates, and their authorised representatives.
An official statement said robust security measures, including the deployment of paramilitary forces at the counting centres to safeguard electronic voting machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines, have been implemented. The entire process is being continuously monitored through CCTV surveillance. The DEO emphasised that entry to the counting centres will be strictly regulated, allowing only candidates, their representatives, media personnel, and authorised individuals with valid identity cards issued by the ECI.
Fourteen candidates are in the fray for the seat, including AAP's Sanjeev Arora, Congress' Bharat Bhushan Ashu, BJP's Jiwan Gupta, and SAD's advocate Parupkar Singh Ghuman.
Chief electoral officer Sibin C Thursday said the voter turnout, as per data uploaded till 7pm on the voting day, was 51.33%. As part of a new initiative, polling data was uploaded on the ECINET app by the presiding officers at the respective polling stations.
A total of 194 polling stations were set up. Besides the provision of assured minimum facilities at each polling station, for the first time, a mobile deposit facility was created at the entrance of all polling stations.
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