A total of 194 polling stations were set up with live webcasting facility. Also, designated counters were put up at the entrance of polling stations for voters to securely deposit their mobile devices. These counters were managed by trained volunteers using jute or cloth bag mobile holders.Due to the recent decision of the ECI to reduce the number of electors in a polling station to 1200, two auxiliary polling stations were set up to facilitate voting. One all-women personnel polling station, one all-PWD personnel polling station and ten model polling stations were also set up.As per revised instructions of the ECI, candidates were allowed to set up their booths at a distance of 100m from the entrance of the polling stations, which was an added convenience for voters, especially those not carrying their voter information slips.“In a first-of-its-kind initiative, all polling stations in Ludhiana West have made arrangements for safe mobile phone deposit aims to enhance the voter experience while at the same time upholding the secrecy of voting,” the chief electoral officer said in a post on X.In the morning, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann appealed to voters to cast their votes in the bypoll. “My appeal to the voters of Ludhiana West is that you must exercise your right to vote. You must fulfill your duty for the development and progress of your area. Do not consider today a holiday, definitely go and cast your vote,” Mann said in a post on X in Punjabi.The Ludhiana West assembly seat fell vacant following the death of AAP MLA Gurpreet Bassi in January. Fourteen candidates are in the fray and 1,75,469 voters were eligible to exercise their franchise including 85,371 women and 10 from the third gender. The counting of votes will be held on June 23.
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