Punjab Newsline | Bilaspur/Shimla
The polling process in Himachal Pradesh’s Bilaspur district concluded peacefully with an overall voter turnout of 64.66 percent, according to official figures released by the Himachal Pradesh State Election Commission. Out of 1,19,638 registered voters in the district, a total of 77,359 people exercised their franchise during the Panchayat elections.
Women voters recorded a significantly higher participation rate than men in the district. Of the 60,186 registered male voters, 37,076 cast their votes, taking the male turnout to 61.60 percent. In comparison, 40,283 out of 59,452 registered female voters participated in the election process, resulting in an impressive 67.76 percent turnout among women voters.
The district also had two registered third-gender voters, who participated in the democratic exercise.
To ensure the smooth conduct of the elections, the administration deployed 62 chief officers and supervisors, 428 polling personnel, and 53 additional support staff across the district.
Their coordinated efforts helped complete the polling process peacefully and efficiently. However, voting continued at several polling booths even after the official closing time of 3 PM due to long queues.
Meanwhile, voting for the first phase of Panchayat elections is underway in 150 Panchayats of Shimla district. Long queues were seen outside polling stations since morning as voters arrived in large numbers. Polling began at 7 AM and was scheduled to continue till 3 PM.
After polling concludes, counting for the posts of Pradhan, Up-Pradhan, and Ward Members will take place at Panchayat offices and schools. Ballot boxes for Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections will be transported to designated locations set by the Election Commission, while counting for these seats will be held on May 31.
