As the counting of votes in Bihar will take place on Tuesday, the number of stations has been increased to maintain social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic, Bihar’s chief election commissioner HR Srinivasa said on Monday. “This year we have 55 counting stations compared to the usual number of 38, which corresponds to the number of districts, in the state. This has been done to increase social distancing, ”Srinivasa told the ANI news agency.
The survey panel said it has established 55 counting centers, housing 414 aisles, spread across 38 districts in the state. Each of the three top count centers has been established in four districts of East Champaran (which has 12 electoral districts), Gaya (10 electoral districts), Siwan (eight electoral districts) and Begusarai (seven). The other districts have one or two counting centers each.
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The electoral regulatory body has also stepped up security arrangements in the centers and has deployed 59 companies of paramilitary forces to maintain law and general order in the state. “The Electoral Commission handed over 19 companies of paramilitary forces to guard the security cameras. They are the most intimate core of the security of the counting centers, ”added Srinivasa.
The counting of the votes for the election of a new government in the state will begin at 8 a.m. on Tuesday. Elections to the 243-seat assembly were held in three phases on October 28, November 3, and November 7.
The government of the National Democratic Alliance, led by Nitish Kumar, is looking to retain another term with the president of Janata Dal (United) as the candidate for prime minister, even as most of the exit polls, which have often been misplaced in the past, they have predicted an advantage for the Grand Alliance led by Tejashwi Yadav, or Mahagathbandhan, which comprises the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress and left-wing parties in the state.
If the predictions turn out to be correct, the 31-year-old RJD leader will be the youngest prime minister of any state in the country. Prior to this, the Farook Health Ministry became the Prime Minister of the Puducherry Union Territory at the age of 29, while Satish Prasad Singh, at the age of 32, was elected to the post in Bihar in 1968.
Tuesday’s count will also decide the political fate of almost a score of ministers. Among them are Nand Kishore Yadav (Patna Sahib), Pramod Kumar (Motihari), Rana Randhir (Madhuban), Suresh Sharma (Muzaffarpur), Shrawan Kumar (Nalanda), Jai Kumar Singh (Dinara) and Krishnanandan Prasad Verma (Jehanabad).
(With contributions from the agency)
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