Jaipur, Nov 14 (PTI) Voting in the fourth and final phase of Rajasthan’s panchayat elections was underway on Saturday amid allegations of glitches in electronic voting machines (EVMs) in some areas, officials said.
Polling for zila parishad and panchayat samiti members began at 7 am across 25 districts and will continue till 6 pm.
Turnout rose from 15.81 per cent till 10 am to 39.15 per cent till 1 pm, according to officials.
Jalore’s Sarnau panchayat samiti recorded the highest turnout at 50.54 per cent, while Bundi’s Nainwa registered the lowest at 25.09 per cent till 1 pm.
Reports of delays in polling at several places due to glitches in electronic voting machines (EVMs) also emerged.
A total of 8,843 candidates are contesting 2,524 seats in this phase, including 382 zila parishad wards and 2,142 panchayat samiti wards. Of the contestants, 1,322 are vying for zila parishad seats and 7,521 for panchayat samiti wards.
BJP leader Rajendra Rathore’s son Prakram Singh and daughter-in-law are among the prominent candidates contesting from Churu district.
Sri Ganganagar has the highest number of zila parishad wards in this phase, with 101 candidates contesting 30 seats. It also has the highest number of panchayat samiti contestants, with 553 candidates for 164 wards.
More than 1.05 crore voters, including 54.88 lakh men and 51.05 lakh women, are eligible to cast their ballots at 11,905 polling stations across the 25 districts.
Sri Ganganagar has the highest electorate at 8,67,167, followed by Banswara with 6,45,611, Churu with 6,40,198 and Didwana-Kuchaman with 6,03,262 voters.
In Jaipur, polling is being held for 13 zila parishad wards and 82 panchayat samiti wards. A total of 32 candidates are contesting zila parishad seats, with 241 in the fray for panchayat samiti wards. The district has 4,07,280 eligible voters and 447 polling stations.
In Churu, 66 candidates are contesting 19 zila parishad wards, while 351 candidates are vying for 114 panchayat samiti wards. The district has 6,40,198 voters and 689 polling stations.
Banswara has 72 candidates contesting 22 zila parishad wards. In Bundi, 50 candidates are contesting 22 wards, while Jaisalmer has 77 candidates for 21 wards.
The final phase also covers Balotra, Baran, Beawar, Bharatpur, Bikaner, Chittorgarh, Deeg, Dholpur, Hanumangarh, Jalore, Jhunjhunu, Karauli, Khairthal-Tijara, Pratapgarh, Sawai Madhopur, Salumber, Sikar and Tonk.
Polling in the first three phases was held on October 22, October 28 and November 3.
Counting of votes for all four phases will take place on November 20, followed by elections for zila pramukhs and panchayat samiti pradhans. PTI AG KSI
KSI
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