Enormous 71% voter turnout in 2nd phase
| Date :19-Apr-2019 |
The Hitavada State Bureau Rajnandgaon/Mahasamund/Kanker/Raipur:
60,000 security personnel, drones deployed to keep hawk’s eye
Fate of 36 candidates sealed in Kanker, Mahasamund and R’gaon
OVER 71.09 percent per cent voter turnout was recorded in the Second phase of polling being held in three Lok Sabha constituencies including Kanker, Mahasamund and Rajnandgaon in Chhattisgarh on Thursday. The fate of 36 candidates who are in fray from all these three Lok Sabha constituencies were sealed in the EVMs. Braving the scorching temperature enthusiastic voters bee-lined at their respective polling booths for the Lok Sabha elections in Chhattisgarh where voting commenced at 7am in Kanker, Rajnandgaon and Mahasamund Lok Sabha constituencies, amid tight security.
Around 11 per cent voting was recorded by 9 am. Since some areas in the three Lok Sabha constituencies are affected with Left Wing Extremism, massive security arrangements were made and over 60,000 personnel, and drones, were deployed. A large part of the Kanker and Rajnadngaon Lok Sabha constituencies are LWE affected where security forces maintained extra vigil to ensure peaceful polling.
Due to Maoist threat, polling in four out of eight Assembly segments under Kanker Lok Sabha constituency including Antagarh, Keshkal Bhanupratappur and Kanker was held from 7 am to 3 pm while in the rest including Sihawa, Sanjari-Balod, Daundilohara and Gunderdehi - polling was held from 7 am to 5 pm. Of the 2,022 polling booths in Kanker, 490 were hypersensitive while 28 were sensitive booths, where additional security forces were deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
Polling was held in Manpur-Mohla Assembly segment in Rajnandgaon Lok Sabha constituency from 7 am to 3 pm, while voters in rest of the seven Assembly segments exercised their franchise from 7 am to 5 pm. Of the 2,322 polling stations in Rajnandgaon, 279 were hypersensitive and 302 were sensitive. In Mahasamund Lok Sabha constituency polling was held between 7am to 5pm, except in six hypersensitive booths at Odh, Kamabhaundi, Amammora, Badegobra, Sahbinkachhar and Kodomali villages, where it was held from 7am to 3pm. Of the 2,140 polling booths in the Mahasamund constituency, 254 have been marked as sensitive. Altogether 36 candidates are in fray of which maximum 14 candidates are contesting from Rajnandgaon followed by 13 in Mahasamund and nine in Kanker. Under the Second Phase of elections, altogether 49,07,489 voters including 24,38,320 male, 24,69,110 female and 59 trans-gender were eligible to vote.