Odisha Chief Electoral Officer(CEO) Surendra Kumar today said that preparations are on to conduct the general elections in April or May next year.
Kumar said this while replying to a question by scribes whether there is possibility of holding early elections in the state and the country.
Last election to the Odisha assembly was held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha poll.
Stating that the preparation for the next elections is "on in full swing", Kumar said that necessary arrangements are being made as per the schedule fixed by the Election Commission.
"I am not authorised to make any comment on whether early polls will be held. But I can say that we are preparing for conducting elections for Lok Sabha and Odisha Assembly in April or May 2019," Kumar told reporters here.
The final voters' list for the next elections in the state will be published on January 4, 2019, he said.
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The process for the special summary revision of the voter list and publication of draft voter list will start from September 1, while objections will be heard by October 31, 2018.
The inclusion and exclusion of voters in the list would be allowed till October 31. He said the youths who attain the age of 18 in January 2019 may register their names in the voter list in October, 2018.
As per the voter list revision in 2018 there are 3,12,57,803 voters - 1,61,16,754 of them male, 1,51,38,898 female and 2,151 third gender.
The number of polling booths was 35,896, he said adding their number for the next elections is likely to go up by at least 1,800 to 2,000 for the upcoming polls in the state.
Kumar said that the ECI has declared this year as Sugam Matdan Varsh or accessible elections for all and steps are therefore being taken to ensure that people with disabilities get enrolled and avail of facilities at booths to vote easily.
He said electronic voting machines will be procured from states like Chhattishgarh, Maharastra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Assam, for the next elections in Odisha.
Along with EVMs, voter verifiable paper audit trail machines will be also used in the upcoming elections, he added.
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