Authorities deploy staff to manage ZPTC and MPTC vote counting

State Election Commissioner Anil Chandra Punetha confirmed that elaborate arrangements were finalized to process the ballots cast during the polling held on November 5.

Authorities Deploy Thousands of Staff to Manage Vote Counting

Authorities have deployed 11,002 counting supervisors and 28,692 assistants to manage the tallying process. Across the 365 counting centres, 9,062 tables have been established, with each table designated to handle 1,000 ballot papers per round. Postal ballots are slated to be counted first, and the remaining workload is split equally between ZPTC and MPTC votes. A total of 52,000 personnel have been assigned specifically for the counting phase.

The election covers a large portion of the state’s rural local body seats. While 77 ZPTC and 2,051 MPTC seats were filled unanimously, voting was conducted for the remaining seats. Following reports of booth capturing and damage to ballot boxes, repolling took place on Friday at seven stations across Anantapur, Kurnool, Srikakulam, Markapuram, and Palnadu districts. Across the state, 2,169 candidates contested for ZPTC posts and 18,843 for MPTC seats, with 2.61 crore voters eligible to participate.

Security Measures

To ensure order during the counting, a three-tier security arrangement involving 19,885 police personnel has been implemented. Surveillance is being bolstered by the use of CCTV cameras, drones, and body-worn cameras to monitor sensitive areas. These measures follow the initial polling day, which saw a voter turnout of 70.72%, an increase from the 60.91% recorded during the 2021 elections.

The polling process, which began at 7:00 a.m. on November 5 across 31,460 polling stations, faced widespread challenges. In Sri Sathya Sai district’s Malasamudram village, Gorantla CI Boya Sekhar intercepted YSRCP leaders over allegations of distributing money and liquor, drawing objections from former minister and YSRCP district president Ushasri Charan, who claimed her party cadre was being unfairly targeted. Police identified 1,841 highly sensitive and 2,645 sensitive polling stations, deploying additional personnel and using webcasting and videography to monitor them.

Director General of Police Harish Kumar Gupta emphasized that the force utilized route mobile teams and striking-force units to maintain order, noting that presiding officers were instructed to immediately alert Zonal Magistrates to any malpractice or disturbance.