Guwahati, April 2: The panchayat elections in Assam will be conducted in two phases – on May 2 and May 7, with vote counting scheduled for May 11, State Election Commissioner Alok Kumar announced on Wednesday.

The election will take place in 25,007 polling booths across the state, excluding Karbi Anglong, West Karbi Anglong, Dima Hasao, and Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) districts. Compared to the 2018 panchayat elections, there has been a 6% increase in the number of polling booths.

In the first phase on May 2, the elections will be held in Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Charaideo, Sivasagar, Majuli, Jorhat, Golaghat, Dhemaji, Lakhimpur, Sonitpur, Biswanath, Cachar, Hailakandi, and Sribhumi districts.

In the second phase on May 7, the elections will take place in Dhubri, South Salmara Mankachar, Goalpara, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Bajali, Nalbari, Kamrup, Kamrup (Metro), Hojai, Nagaon, Morigaon, and Darrang districts.

The deadline for filing nominations is April 11 for both phases, with scrutiny of nomination papers and the final list of candidates published on April 12. Candidates will be allowed to withdraw nominations until April 17. If needed, re-polling will be conducted on May 4 for the first phase and May 9 for the second phase.

A total of 1,80,36,682 voters will participate in the election, comprising 90,71,264 male voters and 89,65,010 female voters. This marks a 13.27% increase in voter count compared to the 2018 panchayat elections, which had a total of 1,56,41,456 voters.

The election will decide the position of 21,920 Gram Panchayat (GP) members, 2,190 GP presidents, 2,192 GP vice-presidents, 2,192 Anchalik Panchayat (AP) members, 181 AP presidents, 181 AP vice-presidents and 387 Zila Parishad (ZP) members.

With the announcement of the poll schedule, the Model Code of Conduct has come into effect immediately.

The expenditure limit for ZP candidates is set ₹10 lakh,AP candidates ₹2.50 lakh and the expenditure limit for GP candidates is set ₹25,000.

The Assam State Election Commission (ASEC) has set eligibility conditions for candidates filing nominations. Accordingly, candidates must be at least 21 years old, they must have a functional sanitary toilet in their house, they must not violate the legal age of marriage, they must not have more than two children and they must file an affidavit under Rule 22A regarding any criminal convictions or pending legal charges.

The minimum educational qualification required for candidates varies based on the position and community category. GP members should have a minimum HSLC (Class 10); relaxed to Class 8 for ST, SC, OBC, and MOBC candidates. AP and ZP members should have a minimum Higher Secondary (Class 12); relaxed to HSLC (Class 10) for ST, SC, OBC, and MOBC candidates.

As the elections draw closer, political parties are expected to intensify their campaigns, with the two-phased polls playing a crucial role in shaping the local governance landscape in Assam.

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