Madhya Pradesh gears up for first phase of Lok Sabha polls on Friday

ELECTIONS-MP-FIRST PHASEMadhya Pradesh gears up for first phase of Lok Sabha polls on Friday Bhopal, Apr 18 (PTI) All preparations have been made across the six constituencies in Madhya Pradesh where polling will be held on Friday in the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections, an official said.

Of the 29 parliamentary constituencies in the BJP-ruled state, Shahdol, Mandla (both reserved for Scheduled Tribes), Jabalpur, Balaghat, Chhindwara and Sidhi will go to polls in the first phase.  Altogether, these constituencies cover 13 districts and 27 assembly segments.

Voting will start at 7 am and end at 6 pm in most places, the state's chief electoral officer Anupam Rajan told reporters here on Thursday. Due to security reasons, polling will be 
held from 7 am to 4 pm in Baihar, Lanji and Paraswada assembly segments of the Naxal-affected Balaghat constituency, he added.

As many as 88 candidates -- 81 men and seven women -- are in the fray across the six constituencies. Jabalpur has the highest 19 candidates while Shadold has the lowest ten candidates in the fray.

Polling teams have already started arriving at 13,588 booths. Women officials will be in charge of 1,118 polling booths, Rajan informed. The total number of registered voters in the six constituencies is 1,13,09, 636 (57,20,780 male, 55,88,669 female and 187 third gender).

Arrangements for shelter, water and ORS (oral rehydration solution) have been made at polling booths in view of the hot weather. A helicopter has been stationed in the Naxal-hit Balaghat district while an air ambulance would be available in Jabalpur to meet any eventuality, Rajan said.

Preventive action has been taken against 49,334 people for maintaining law and order and 21,887 licensed weapons have been deposited with police ahead of polling. As many as 192 flying squad teams and 233 Static Surveillance Teams will be deployed across the six constituencies.

The election commission wants a maximum turn-out at polling booths, Rajan said, adding that it was aiming for the 77.82 per cent voting recorded in the November 2023 assembly elections. 
Madhya Pradesh had recorded 61.57 per cent voting in the 2014 general elections.

The percentage rose to 71.16 in 2019. The second, third and fourth phase of the elections in MP will take place on April 26, May 7 and May 13. In 2019, the BJP had won 28 out of the 29 Lok Sabha seats while the Congress had managed to win only one seat -- Chhindwara.