Panchayat samiti, zila parishad polls put off

The elections to 23 zila parishads and the 154 panchayat samities, scheduled to be held by October 5, have been postponed once again. The elections will now be held by December 5.

A notification postponing the elections was issued on Thursday by the Secretary, Department of Rural Development and Panchayats. Sources said the elections were postponed as the state was still grappling with the relief and rehabilitation of flood-affected people.

This is the third time that the elections have been postponed. Initially, the government had said that the elections would be held by May 31. Later, claiming that the blocks were being re-organised, these were postponed and rescheduled to be held before October 5.

These elections were last held in September 2018.