Gadwal Registers 86.77% Turnout in First Phase of Gram Panchayat Elections.

The first phase of Gram Panchayat elections in four mandals of Jogulamba Gadwal district recorded an impressive 86.77% voter turnout, District Collector B.M. Santosh announced on Thursday.

Out of the total Gram Panchayats in the district, 14 were unanimously elected, while polling was conducted in the remaining 92 panchayats. Voting commenced at 7:00 AM, and officials monitored polling percentages at two-hour intervals.

According to the Collector, the polling percentage in Dharur Mandal stood at 25.28% at 9:00 AM, 56.74% at 11:00 AM, and 85.89% by 1:00 PM.

In Gadwal Mandal, voting progressed orderly with 20.06%, 47.93%, and 88.71% turnout recorded during the same time intervals.

Gattu Mandal registered 19.66%, 51.61%, and 84.36%, while KT Doddi Mandal reported 24.97%, 65.88%, and 87.99% turnout respectively.

Across the four mandals, a total of 57,476 women, 56,786 men, and one voter from the ‘others’ category exercised their franchise.

Later the District Collector B.M. Santosh personally supervised the counting of votes for the first-phase Gram Panchayat elections at Chenugonipally village in Gadwal Mandal.

The counting center, set up at the Government Upper Primary School, was inspected by the Collector, who reviewed the arrangements and the progress of the counting process.

He emphasized that transparency and accuracy must remain top priorities during counting. Officials were instructed to first count postal ballots, then segregate Ward Member ballot papers, and conduct counting in a systematic manner. After completing ward-wise counting, all Sarpanch ballot papers would be mixed in a drum and counted candidate-wise.

Collector Santosh noted that security, surveillance, and staff coordination were functioning efficiently at the counting center. Adequate police deployment had been arranged to prevent any untoward incidents after the announcement of results.

He affirmed that the entire counting process was being conducted in a peaceful, impartial, and transparent manner.

Additional Collector Narsinga Rao, PO Raja Shekhar, Panchayat Secretary Rama Narasimhulu, OPOs, and other staff participated in the supervision activities.