E-Paper
Ludhiana MC polls: Campaigning ends today; voting to be videographed, says admn
12 lakh voters to decide the fate of over 600 candidates on December 21; polling teams will be dispatched to their respective stations on December 20; over 11,000 officials have been deputed for poll duty
The district administration is fully prepared to ensure the peaceful conduct of elections for the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation (MC) as well as various municipal councils and a nagar panchayat. The campaigning for the elections will conclude at 4 pm on Thursday.
District electoral officer-cum-deputy commissioner Jitendra Jorwal announced that CCTV cameras will be installed at each polling station for the first time to ensure a transparent polling and counting process.
Jorwal said a well-planned strategy has been developed to ensure these elections are conducted peacefully and transparently. He confirmed that the necessary arrangements have been made and that 11,054 officers from both the civil and police administration have been assigned to ensure free and fair polls.
In total, 12,28,187 voters will decide the fate of candidates in the fray, including 447 for the MC and others for the other civic bodies on December 21. The MC has 95 wards. The Machhiwara and Sahnewal Municipal Councils have 15 wards each, while the council of Mullanpur Dakha has 13 wards. The Nagar Panchayat of Malaud consists of 11 wards and both the Municipal Councils of Khanna and Samrala have one ward each.
For the MC elections, there are 11,65,749 voters, comprising 6,24,708 male, 5,40,938 female and 103 third gender voters. Jorwal mentioned that 420 polling stations have been designated as very sensitive and will receive security coverage from the local police to guarantee a fair election process on December 21, where 447 candidates will compete.
Regarding the elections for the Municipal Councils of Machhiwara, Sahnewal, Mullanpur Dakha, Khanna, Samrala and and Nagar Panchayat of Malaud, there are 62,438 voters, including 32,429 male, 30,007 female and two third gender voters. A total of 56 wards across these councils and a nagar panchayat will have 80 polling stations set up, with 31 stations classified as sensitive and 14 as very sensitive. In total, 160 candidates are contesting in these elections, including 24 candidates for Machhiwara, 54 for Sahnewal, 44 for Mullanpur Dakha, 5 for Khanna, 2 for Samrala and 31 for Malaud Nagar Panchayat.
Voting will be conducted from 7 am to 4 pm, with vote counting immediately following the closure of polls on December 21. Campaigning will conclude on December 19 at 4 pm, and polling teams will be dispatched to their respective stations on December 20.
The deputy commissioner emphasised that the polling process and vote counting would be conducted transparently and that no one would be allowed to disrupt the law. He reiterated the district administration’s commitment to putting in place robust security measures and procedural checks to ensure free and fair elections.
Noting that Ludhiana recorded a voting percentage of 59.08% in the 2018 elections, Jorwal encouraged voters to exercise their right to vote freely to strengthen grassroots democracy. He assured that the administration would do everything possible to ensure peaceful and transparent elections.
