All preparations for the smooth counting of votes for the Lok Sabha General Election-2024 to be held on June 4 are in the final stage. Alongside the votes recorded in Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), postal ballots will also be counted. The counting of postal ballots will be centralised in the headquarters districts of the respective Returning Officers (ROs) for 11 parliamentary constituencies. The transportation of postal ballots from other districts to these headquarters has been successfully completed. Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Chhattisgarh, Reena Babasaheb Kangale, informed that so far, a total of 41,877 postal ballots have been received in the State. This includes 26,936 postal ballots from employees and officers on election duty, 2,761 from voters over 85 years old under home voting, 1,453 from disabled voters, and 779 from the essential services category. Besides, 9,948 Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballots (ETPBs) have been received from service voters, with more expected until the commencement of the vote counting.

 

On the day of counting, ETPBs received before 8 AM will be delivered by the Postal Department’s representative to the counting venues, with proper ID cards or passes issued for entry. The counting of postal ballots will begin at 8 AM on June 4 in the headquarters districts of the 11 ROs, with all necessary arrangements and preparations in place. These postal ballots are currently secured in the strong-room located in the district treasury, and will be transported to the counting centers under tight security at 6 AM on the counting day, in the presence of the contesting candidates or their representatives. The counting of EVM votes will commence at 8:30 AM, half an hour after the start of postal ballot counting, in the 11 district head quarters. In the remaining 22 districts, EVM vote counting will start at 8 AM. Separate counting halls have been prepared for postal ballots in the district headquarters, with a maximum of 500 postal ballots counted per table.

 

Each table will have an additional Assistant Returning Officer (AARO), a counting observer, two counting assistants, and one micro observer. According to the Election Commission of India’s instructions, daily updates on postal ballots received are being provided to all contesting candidates at the district level. The postal ballots received from various Lok Sabha constituencies in the first phase: Bastar - 3,264 postal ballots, in the second phase second phase: Rajnandgaon - 1,568, Mahasamund - 4,242, Kanker - 6,326 postal ballots, third phase: Surguja - 2,440, Raigarh - 3,585, Janjgir-Champa - 5,682, Korba - 2,789, Bilaspur - 3,607, Durg - 3,525, Raipur - 4,849 postal ballots.