Chief Election Officer reviews readiness for vote tally

Chief Election Officer Praveen Gupta has reviewed the preparations for the vote count. Gupta stated that adequate arrangements have been ensured at the counting centres for the counting of votes for the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly elections in 2023. He mentioned that the counting of postal ballots will begin at all centres on December 3 at 8 am, and the counting of votes through EVMs will commence at 8:30 am.

1121 AROs deployed at 36 centres for 199 constituencies
According to Chief Election Officer Praveen Gupta, 1121 Assistant Returning Officers (AROs) have been deployed at all 36 centres for the counting of votes for all 199 Assembly constituencies. The counting of votes will take place at two centres in Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Nagaur and one centre in the remaining 30 electoral districts.

Counting of votes in 4245 rounds
Gupta mentioned that 2524 tables have been set up at the counting centres for the counting of votes received through EVMs at 51890 polling centres. The counting of votes in a total of 4245 rounds will be completed. The counting of votes for the Shiv Assembly constituency will continue for a maximum of 41 rounds, while the counting of votes for Ajmer South will be completed in just 14 rounds.

Stringent security arrangements
He stated that strict security arrangements have been made at the counting venue and the surrounding areas. Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and extensive deployment of Rapid Action Force (RAF) will be in place during the counting process. He mentioned that a three-tier security arrangement has been made for entry to the counting venue to ensure no untoward incident occurs.

The ‘Compulsory Verification’ method was also implemented
Gupta mentioned that while adhering to the Election Commission’s guidelines, it will be ensured that the results are declared without any errors and on time. He said that to ensure complete impartiality in the counting, the ‘Compulsory Verification’ method adopted by the Election Commission of India will also be implemented. In this, after the complete counting of votes, the selection of 5-5 VVPATs from each Assembly’s polling centres will be done by lottery, and their slips will be counted and matched with the votes received through EVMs.