Raipur
The counting of votes for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections will start at 8:00 AM on Tuesday across all the 11 Lok Sabha constituencies. This was confirmed by Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Reena Babasaheb Kangale. The process will take place at all 33 district headquarters, with each assembly constituency having its designated counting hall.
There will be a total of 94 counting halls throughout the state. Some constituencies like Ramjujganj, Samri, Kondagaon, and Keshkal will have two halls each, whereas the remaining 86 constituencies will have one hall each. Candidates have been informed of the complete details, including addresses, dates, times, and voting procedures for polling locations by the returning officers.
For the 90 assembly constituencies within the 11 Lok Sabha constituencies, provisions have been made for 11 returning officers, 476 assistant returning officers, 4,362 enumerators, and 1,671 micro-observers. Reena Babasaheb Kangale added, “The Election Commission of India has deployed 42 counting observers for 90 constituencies across the 11 Lok Sabha constituencies.”
Each counting table will be overseen by a micro-observer, who will supervise the enumerators and equipment provided by the central government. In each counting hall, EVM counting will be done for 6 constituencies: Pandaria, Kawardha, Sarangarh, Bilaigarh, Bharatpur-Sonhat, and Kasdol, each on 21 counting tables. For the remaining 84 constituencies, the counting will occur on 14 counting tables.
Postal ballots will be counted first by the returning officer’s office. Thirty minutes after starting the postal ballot count, the counting of EVMs will begin across the constituencies at 8:00 AM. Postal ballots will exclusively be counted at district headquarters. Specific halls have been allocated for this purpose—with two in Kanker and Mahasamund and one each in the other 9 constituencies—ensuring a maximum of 500 postal ballots per table.
All participants, including candidates, enumerators, and their polling agents, are required to carry photo ID cards. They are advised to arrive at the polling halls by 7:00 AM to avoid any inconvenience. Security arrangements are stringent, allowing entry only after identity verification at multiple levels.
The district police will enforce a pedestrian zone within 100 meters of the polling centers. Access will be managed through barricades, and no vehicles will be permitted inside this pedestrian zone.
The state armed forces will oversee the second level of security, ensuring identity checks and preventing unauthorized items, such as mobile phones, from entering the area. The third level of security will be managed by the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) at the entrances to the counting centers, ensuring strict prevention of unauthorized items from entering.
Media centers will be set up at each polling center, with a senior officer monitoring the counting halls along with small groups of media personnel. However, media personnel are not allowed to use physical cameras inside polling halls; only handheld cameras are permitted to maintain the voting process’s secrecy.
Only authorized individuals, including the returning officer/assistant returning officer, polling supervisor, polling assistant, micro-observer, election observers, duty officials involved in the election, candidates, and their polling agents, will be allowed inside the counting halls as per the latest guidelines.
According to the Election Commission’s recent instructions, certain distinguished individuals such as central and state ministers, city mayors, and other protected persons, cannot be appointed as polling agents. Electronic devices, cameras, scanners, laptops, and security equipment are strictly prohibited inside the counting halls.
Counting supervisors will ensure the availability of calculators and pens for enumerators. Candidates and their agents can only bring documents and pens to the counting center. Each counting agent will receive Form 17C Part 1, issued by the polling officer on polling day.
The counting process will occur in a staggered manner in the presence of candidates, RO/ARO, or their representatives. To maintain voting secrecy, Section 128 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 will be read and enforced by the returning officer/assistant returning officer. Strict discipline will be maintained during the counting process, and any rule violators will be expelled from the counting hall.
Security personnel are not permitted inside the counting halls without the returning officer’s permission. Counting supervisors will document the results displayed on the Control Unit of the EVM to ensure accurate results against each candidate. Each counting agent will be issued Form 17C Part 2 for each voting phase, along with its verification.
The results of each phase will be announced by the assistant returning officer for the assembly constituencies within the Lok Sabha constituencies. These results will also be listed at the Lok Sabha level by the returning officer.
The VVPAT paper slips from five randomly selected polling stations in each assembly constituency will be verified at the end of the final counting phase. This selection will take place in the presence of candidates and counting agents by the assistant returning officer.
After receiving the necessary permissions from the observer, the returning officer will compile the results from all counting centers within the assembly constituencies. The final result will be announced, and the election certificate will be issued to the elected candidate.
Results for each assembly constituency within the Lok Sabha constituency will be available from 8:00 AM on the Election Commission of India’s portal and the Voter Helpline App. Arrangements for displaying election results on TrendsTV LED screens have been made at various city locations.
