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TFP Bureau, Raipur, May 26, 2024: The counting of votes for the Lok Sabha General Election 2024 will take place on June 4, 2024. Alongside votes recorded in Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), postal ballots will also be counted. The Chief Electoral Officer of Chhattisgarh, Mrs. Reena Babasaheb Kangale, announced that the counting of postal ballots will be completed in the headquarters districts of the Returning Officers for the state’s 11 parliamentary constituencies.
Mrs. Kangale reported that as of May 25, a total of 41,877 postal ballot papers have been received in Chhattisgarh. These include 26,936 postal ballots from election duty personnel, 2,761 from voters over 85 years old under home voting, 1,453 from disabled voters, and 779 from essential services personnel. Additionally, 9,948 Electronic Transmitted Postal Ballots (ETPBs) from service voters have been received through the post, with more expected until the counting day. ETPBs arriving before 8 AM on June 4 will be delivered to the counting venue by a postal department representative, who will be issued an ID card/pass for entry.
The counting of postal ballots will commence at 8 AM on June 4 in the headquarters districts of the 11 Returning Officers. Necessary arrangements for this process are complete. Postal ballot papers are securely stored in strong rooms at district treasuries and will be transported to the counting centers at 6 AM on the counting day, under strict security and in the presence of contesting candidates or their representatives.
The counting of EVM votes will begin at 8:30 AM in these 11 districts, half an hour after the postal ballot counting starts. In the remaining 22 districts, the counting of EVM votes will commence at 8 AM.
Dedicated counting halls for postal ballots have been set up in the headquarters districts, with a maximum of 500 postal ballots counted at each table. Each table will have an additional Assistant Returning Officer (AARO), one counting observer, two counting assistants, and one micro observer.
As per Election Commission of India guidelines, daily updates on postal ballots are being provided to all contesting candidates at the district level. To date, various Lok Sabha constituencies have received postal ballots as follows: Bastar (3,264), Rajnandgaon (1,568), Mahasamund (4,242), Kanker (6,326), Surguja (2,440), Raigarh (3,585), Janjgir-Champa (5,682), Korba (2,789), Bilaspur (3,607), Durg (3,525), and Raipur (4,849).
