Punjab Zila Parishad, Panchayat Samitis Election 2018: Voting underway

Chandigarh, Sep 19: Voting for 22 zila parishads and 150 panchayat samitis polls are underway on Wednesday. In view of the Punjab Civic Polls 2018, most of the public school and colleges will remain closed. The main contenders - Congress and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) - are contesting over a total of 354 zila parishad seats and 2,900 panchayat seats.

The voting commenced at 8 am and will continue till 4 pm, officials said. A total of 354 zila parishad members and 2,900 panchayat samiti members were going to be elected in these polls, they added.

There are a total of 1,27,87,395 registered voters, comprising 60,99,053 women and 97 third-gender voters. The counting of votes will take place on September 22.

A total of 17,268 polling booths have been set up in the state and 35 observers have been appointed to ensure a peaceful election. Around 50,000 Punjab Police personnel have been deployed across the state in view of the polls.