AGARTALA: Voting for polling personnel to be engaged in the West Tripura constituency got underway in all the facilitation centres in Tripura on Tuesday while voting in six Reang refugee camps witnessed ‘moderate’ polling, official sources said here.
The polling began at Umkantai Academy facilitation centre at around 11 am as per the schedule prepared by the state election panel. But it is not confirmed how many polling personnel will cast their votes during the period.
“Right now, we can’t tell the exact number of polling personnel- mainly security personnel who would cast their votes through postal ballots. It will be known tomorrow or day after,” said an official of the state election panel here on Tuesday.
Designated officers were asked to receive filled up postal ballots as per the requisition and the date for exercising the democratic right for polling personnel could be extended if necessary. Approximately 15,000 polling and security personnel would cast their votes by postal ballot paper.
Postal ballot votes for service voters, security personnel and transporters would be conducted from April 1 and 2 for poll personnel from West Tripura district. The process would follow for poll personnel from East Tripura parliament constituency on April 3 and April 4.
A total of 23.83 lakh voters would exercise their voting rights in the Lok Sabha elections to be held in two phases- West Tripura Lok Sabha constituency on April 7 and East Tripura Lok Sabha constituency on April 12. Of the total voters, 12.46 lakh are male and 11. 37 lakh female as per electoral rolls published on January 6 this year.
Meanwhile, polling in all six Reang refugee camps in Kanchapur subdivision began on Tuesday morning amid tight security. Though the polling was slow in the initial phase, the turnout started gaining ground as time passed. The polling was peaceful with no untoward incident reported till the last report came in.
A total of 11,500 Bru voters living in six relief camps in Kanchanpur sub-division would be voting through postal ballots from April 1 to April 3. They are voters in Mizoram’s lone Lok Sabha constituency.