The notification for the first phase of Lok Sabha elections will be issued tomorrow. Elections will be held in 102 Lok Sabha seats in 17 States and Four Union Territories in this phase. Thirty-nine seats of Tamil Nadu, 12 seats of Rajasthan, eight seats of Uttar Pradesh, six seats of Madhya Pradesh, five seats each in Uttarakhand, Assam and Maharashtra, four seats of Bihar, three seats of West Bengal, two seats each in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya and one seat each in Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Jammu and Kashmir, Lakshadweep and Puducherry will go to polls in the first phase. Nominations can be filed till the 27th of March. Voting will be held on 19th of next Month. The Lok Sabha are scheduled to be conducted in seven phases in the country, while the counting will take place on 4th June.
As country braces for mega General elections in coming days, the Election Commission, which referred to its record as ‘Gold Standard’ is committed to conducting Lok Sabha polls fairly, freely, while also ensuring safety. The commission has laid out plans to address all existing challenges or those which may occur during the elections. Muscle power along with the misuse of money, spread of misinformation, and violations of the Model Code of Conduct remains the main hurdle. To tackle this issue, the poll body is deploying enough Central Armed Police Force in areas prone to incidents. Round the clock Integrated control rooms are being set up across districts. Webcasting facility will be put in place at sensitive polling booths. Efforts also include executing pending Non-Bailable Warrants, collecting arms, and monitoring individuals with a history of trouble. Countrywide checkpoints are being set up, while drones will be used for border surveillance. District and state administrations have been instructed to ensure fairness, including randomizing polling staff.
