Bihar Election Results Will Come Late Night, Says Poll Body

Bihar election results will be available later today, the Election Commission said Tuesday evening, as the counting of votes - which began at 8 AM - neared the 12-hour mark. The poll body said results were being delayed because of safety measures in place during the coronavirus pandemic. These measures included a 63 per cent increase in EVMs (electronic voting machines) and nearly double the number of polling booths - from 65,000 in 2015 to 1.02 lakh this year. There have also been an increase in postal ballots. In addition, the number of counting centres has also increased - from 38 (in 2015) to 55 - in order to maintain social distancing between election officials.