Global polls
As the world is in the midst of the ‘Great Election Year’ of 2024, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has sounded the alarm on the perilous tight-rope walk between democratic exercises and fiscal responsibility.
Barring stray incidents of violence, polling for the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation, the biggest municipal body in Punjab which went to polls on Saturday, passed off by and large peacefully.
An incident of firing and stray incidents of clashes between the members of various political parties were reported but nearly 43 per cent voting was recorded till 2 p.m.
A total of 494 candidates are contesting for the 95 municipal wards. Results will be announced on February 27.
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The main fight is between the ruling Congress, the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (SAD-BJP) alliance and the Aam Aadmi Party-Lok Insaf Party alliance.
There are over 10.5 lakh voters in Ludhiana. As many as 1,153 polling stations have been set up.
Civic issues like water supply, lack of cleanliness, pollution, bad roads and infrastructure and poor sewerage are the main issues for common people in the election.
Tight security arrangements were in place on Saturday for the smooth conduct of the polling process.
The Congress, which runs the government in Punjab since March 2017, had won the municipal elections in the municipal corporations of Amritsar, Jalandhar and Patiala in December.
The Congress had also emerged victorious in 20 out of 29 Municipal Councils and Nagar Panchayat.
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