EVMs for Nizamabad LS poll to reach by April 3: EC

: Over 26,000 ballot units for Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency, where over 170 farmers are among 185 in the fray, are expected be in place by April 4, a senior Election Commission of India official said Tuesday.

Umesh Sinha, Senior Deputy Election Commissioner, said 600 engineers have been deployed for First Level Checks (FLC) of the Electronic Voting Machines.

"The ballot units have already been dispatched from the factory. One lot is reaching in the evening. All these machines will be here by tomorrow afternoon.

Tomorrow morning FLC will start. And then the second dispatch will be in the afternoon.

We hope that by tomorrow night all the machines will be there or by latest day after tomorrow morning," Sinha told reporters in a press conference.

Over 170 farmers have filed nominations for the April 11 Lok Sabha elections as a mark of protest, alleging that the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi had failed to ensure Minimum Support Price for turmeric and red jowar (sorghum) produce and also in getting the Turmeric Board established in Nizamabad.

With 185 candidates, including the farmers, in the fray for the elections in the state, the EC has instructed the Chief Electoral Officer, Telangana, to make arrangements for conduct elections to Nizamabad PC using EVMs.

The CEO placed orders for 26,820 BUs, 2240 CUs and 2600 VVPATs.

A senior Election Commission official said the EC has so far used EVMs with only four Balloting Units connected to the Control Unit. This would be the first time it would use 12 BUs connected to a CU due to the large number of contestants.

Each BU can accommodate the names of 16 contestants.

Sinha said Nizamabad constituency, from where Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Raos daughter and sitting MP Kavitha is seeking reelection, has seven Assembly segments spread over Nizamabad and Jagtial districts.

The constituency has 1,788 polling stations with 1272 in Nizamabad district and 516 in Jagtial district, Sinha added.