Heavy rain delays VMC vote counting

Vijayawada: Heavy rainfall triggered by Cyclone Murasu delayed the commencement of vote counting for the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) elections by more than four hours on Tuesday, causing considerable inconvenience to counting staff, candidates, counting agents and political party representatives.

The counting process, scheduled to begin at 8 am at Andhra Loyola College, started only around 12 noon as staff, counting agents and officials faced difficulties reaching the counting centre amid heavy rain. Several counting personnel arrived at the venue drenched, while rainwater inundated parts of the college campus, affecting arrangements, including the media point.

The delay also affected candidates and their counting agents. Three separate blocks were arranged for counting in the three circles of the municipal corporation. However, waterlogging and adverse weather conditions disrupted the arrangements, prompting candidates, political party leaders and media representatives to express displeasure over the inconvenience.

Although counting began around noon, the declaration of division-wise results started only after 6 pm, delaying the announcement of the final outcome.

Meanwhile, Election Observer S Nagalakshmi inspected the counting arrangements at Andhra Loyola College, while VMC Commissioner HM Dhyanachandra supervised the process and reviewed the facilities.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dasari Srinivasa Rao

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Dasari Srinivasa Rao is a Staff Reporter with The Hans India, covering NTR and Krishna districts, with a primary focus on Vijayawada. He has 32 years of experience in journalism. His reporting spans a wide range of beats, including city and rural development, politics, irrigation, education, crime, and human-interest stories.

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