Chandigarh, April 12 (Inditop.com) India, which has successfully tested the electronic voting machine (EVM) in general elections, will now use it at the grassroot level – to elect village heads or sarpanches.
With elections to Panchayati Raj institutions in Haryana likely to be held next month, state election commission officials Monday said that voting for the post of ‘sarpanch’ (village headman) would be held through EVMs.
The result will be released on the day of polling itself at the village, said Haryana state election commissioner Dharam Vir.
Panchayati Raj, or village council, elections in 13 out of Haryana’s 21 districts are likely to be held next month and exact dates are being finalised, the election commissioner said. The dates will be announced after the voter lists, which are being prepared, are published.
Elections in each district would be conducted in two phases to ensure adequate security arrangements, he added.
He said that strict action would be taken against those employees and officers who do not report for duty in the elections of Panchayati Raj institutions – that make up the third tier of democracy after the federal and state level – and local bodies.
