Stage set for LS poll: Over 3 crore to exercise their franchise across Telangana

Hyderabad: The stage is all set for Lok Sabha polling as more than 3 crore voters will exercise their franchise in Telangana’s 17 Lok Sabha constituencies. A total of 525 candidates are in the poll fray of these seats.

With poll timing beginning from 7 am till 6 pm, except in polling stations 13 Assembly segments in LWE (Left Wing Effected), where timing is fixed till 4 pm. The ‘mock polling’, as part of ensuring EVMs and VVPATs are proper functioning, begins at 5.30 across all the 35,809 pollings stations across Telangana in presence of polling agents, before polling begins. Also for Secunderabad Cantonment (SC) which is going for bypoll, the timing will be till 6 pm. A total of 1,05,019 Ballot Units and 44,569 Control units of EVMs are ready for polling.

The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Vikas Raj informed that besides provision for identifying the polling station allotted to a particular individual voter through Apps and official website of Election Commission, this time SMS facility was also available. "If one sends ECI EPIC number on toll free number 1950, the allotted polling station details can be received," he informed.

In Telangana a total of 160 companies of Central forces, besides State police (72,000), police from neighbouring States (20,000), and other uniformed services (4,000) will remain deployed on Monday. Total personnel on Poll Duty are 2,94,000, including 1,96,000 polling personnel.

The major political parties including Congress, BJP and BRS are going for a three cornered contest, but they remained concerned about the low voter turnout this time. The Hyderabad constituency which has witnessed less than 45% in the previous polls in 2019 also faces a tough task ahead owing to various factors, despite all the arrangements made by the ECI.

Vikas Raj informed that the elaborate arrangements have been made this time in the wake of summer. Besides elongated shades, drinking water facilities amongst other arrangements are made. For any emergency, Paramedical staff along with medical kits also remain at the polling stations, besides standby medical teams. As part of reaching to the last voter 453 auxiliary polling stations have been created to cater to small habitations in remote areas.

Following the polling, all the material will be collected at ‘reception centres’ in Assembly constituency level before being shifted to strong rooms in presence of police escort by the night or early hours on May 14. On June 4, they will be shifted to counting centres. The official said that since the timing was extended till 6 pm, the estimates will start coming by evening, but the actual details will be known only the next day.