Civic polls may be put off

PATNA, JAN. 2. With the State Election Commission (SEC) deferring the publication of the list of polling stations by 15 days, the panchayat elections in Bihar are likely to be deferred. The SEC on Monday decided to defer the publication of the list by 15 days and fixed January 16 as the new date for the purpose, commission sources said.

As per the original schedule, the final list of polling stations was to be declared on January 1. The sources said the SEC had till date received proposals pertaining to finalisation of polling booths for only 7 out of 37 districts of Bihar and the apprehension was that, at the present rate, it might be difficult for the authorities to complete the booths fixation process even by the fresh date announced by the Commission.

According to the schedule announced by Bihar government, the elections to 8,237 panchayats were to be conducted in four phases between January 30, 2001 and February 20, 2001. Formal notification for holding the elections was scheduled to be issued on January 5.

- PTI

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Section  : Other States
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