Tight security was in place when voting began on Thursday morning for a by-election to the Dhamnagar assembly constituency in Odisha, according to officials.
The 252 polling places in the Bhadrak district’s constituency opened for voting at 7 am and would remain open until 6 pm, according to the officials.
2.38 lakh voters, consisting of 1.23 lakh men and 1.15 lakh women, are eligible to cast ballots in this election.
The rural constituency typically sees a voter turnout of about 70%. Voting participation in the 2019 assembly election was 72.64 percent, compared to 73.46 percent in 2014.
For the by-election, up to 1,000 police officers and four companies of central paramilitary forces have been sent out. The constituency’s access and exit points have been secured.
There are currently 1,008 poll workers on duty.
Officials stated that 126 polling places will be webcasting the election, while 110 of the total 252 voting places have been designated as sensitive.
Five people are running for the bypoll.
The opposition BJP has nominated Suryabanshi Suraj, the son of late MLA Bishnu Charan Sethi, whose passing on September 19 prompted the by-election. The ruling BJD has nominated Abanti Das.
Rajendra Das, a former BJD MLA, is running as an Independent while attorney Baba Harekrushna Sethi is running for the Congress. Anwar Sheikh is running for the AAP, which is also in the race.
While Das, a self-help group leader, was the subject of virtual campaigning by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Suraj was the subject of intensive campaigning by Union Ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Bisheswar Tudu.
There are 15 model booths and 5 pink booths with female poll workers and security officers.
For voters with physical limitations, preparations have been made for pick-up and drop-off services.
Election results will be tallied on November 6.
Prasanta Patnaik 
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