Alappuzha: As many as 1,083 election duty personnel across the state were unable to cast their votes due to non-receipt of postal ballots.

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Though arrangements were made to allow voting during training sessions or while collecting polling materials, many officials reported that ballots were unavailable at the time. Special facilitation centres were also set up in respective constituencies, but ballot shortages persisted there as well. The issue came to light after the Election Commission compiled data confirming that 1,083 personnel missed voting.

District-wise figures show: Thiruvananthapuram (203), Kollam (317), Pathanamthitta (109), Kottayam (277), Idukki (26), Ernakulam (83), Thrissur (13), Palakkad (20), Malappuram (10), Wayanad (8), Kozhikode (8), Kannur (4), and Kasaragod (5). Only Alappuzha had adequate ballot availability.

Some health department staff may also miss voting as they are required to be on duty on election day, as per district medical officers’ instructions, leaving them with no opportunity to vote.

Clerical errors led to some names being omitted from the postal voter list, including cases reported in Alappuzha. These individuals had applied for postal voting during training but found their names missing upon reaching facilitation centres. A complaint has been lodged by the Kerala Bank Employees Federation regarding the issue.