The highly anticipated vote counting for the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections in India commenced this morning, marking the culmination of over a month-long electoral process that witnessed a record-breaking 64 crore voters casting their ballots. The counting process is being meticulously conducted across various parts of the country, involving thousands of officers working diligently to ensure accuracy and efficiency.
To ensure a smooth and transparent process, the Election Commission (EC) has implemented a decentralized vote counting system, with counting taking place simultaneously at designated stations in each of the 543 constituencies spread across the country. The counting began at 8 AM today and involves several detailed steps to ensure the integrity and accuracy of the results.
In each round of counting, votes from 14 Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) are counted under the watchful eyes of the returning officer, taking place in a large designated hall. The results from each round of counting are then declared publicly. To further enhance the credibility of the process, the results of five randomly selected EVMs from every assembly segment are verified against the corresponding Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips.
Once all EVM votes, electronically transferred postal ballots, and postal ballots are counted, the returning officer officially declares the constituency’s results. In the event of any discrepancy between the EVM results and the VVPAT results, the VVPAT results will take precedence, underscoring the importance of this verification process.
Postal ballots play a crucial role in facilitating absentee voting in India, allowing certain eligible groups of people to participate in the electoral process remotely. These include service voters, overseas electors, and electors with disabilities, among others.
The final phase of the Lok Sabha elections 2024 took place on June 1, and the counting of votes commenced today, June 4, at 8 AM. The Election Commission of India had earlier announced detailed guidelines for the counting process, which is currently ongoing. The final outcomes of the elections are expected to be announced by this evening, bringing the electoral process to its conclusion.
