Punjab: Counting of votes for local body polls underway; AAP claims victory in 927 zones
Chandigarh (PTI): Counting of votes for the zila parishad and panchayat samiti elections in Punjab was underway on Wednesday even as the ruling AAP claimed it registered victories in more than 900 zones and was leading in many so far. Complete results are expected late evening, officials said.
The counting of ballot papers started at 8 am at 154 centres set up across the state.
Polls were held to elect members of 347 zones of 22 zila parishads and 2,838 zones of 153 panchayat samitis on December 14.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab president and Cabinet Minister Aman Arora said the results of zila parishad and panchayat samiti elections declared so far are in AAP's favour. The results and poll trends so far indicated people's inclination towards the Punjab government's policies, he said.
In zila parishad, the results for 71 zones have been declared so far, with AAP winning in 60 zones, the Congress seven, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the BJP one each and two independents, said Arora.
"Almost 85 per cent results (declared so far) are in favour of AAP," he claimed.
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In case of panchayat samitis, Arora said the results for 1,875 zones have been declared, of which AAP candidates won 867 zones, which works out to be about 68 per cent. The Congress managed to win 216 zones, SAD 129, independents 63 and the BJP 20, he said.
He further said AAP is leading in 113 zones of zila parishads and 257 zones of panchayat samitis. "It shows one-sided atmosphere in the poll. People in villages gave their stamps to AAP's good governance," said Arora.
During the polling for zila parishad and panchayat samiti, a voter turnout of 48 per cent was recorded, with more than 9,000 candidates in the fray.
Earlier in the day in Patiala, SAD workers alleged they were denied entry to a counting centre on the Patiala-Nabha road. SAD leader Jaspal Singh claimed Rahul Saini, son of Punjab Health Minister Dr Balbir Singh, was inside the counting centre, while opposition representatives were denied entry.
The opposition leaders demanded immediate intervention by election authorities to ensure transparent and fair counting, saying that "continued interference" would undermine public faith in the democratic process.
At the University College, Ghanaur, during the counting for the Shambhu block, former MLA Madan Lal Jalalpur alleged that sitting MLA Gurlal Singh Ghanaur entered the counting centre without authorisation.
Jalalpur claimed that despite possessing valid passes, he and his counting agents were stopped outside, while the MLA was allowed in.
He alleged that police officers present at the centre did not intervene despite repeated complaints.
Candidates of all major political parties -- AAP, the Congress, SAD, and the BJP -- contested the zila parishad and panchayat samiti polls on party symbols.
On December 14, the Congress and SAD accused AAP of indulging in "blatant electoral malpractices" during the polling. Earlier, they had targeted the Bhagwant Mann government, accusing it of using the government machinery to prevent their candidates from filing nomination papers and getting those rejected.
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Andhra to be developed as knowledge, creator economy hub: CM Naidu
New Delhi/Amaravati (PTI): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday said the state is taking steps to transform itself into a knowledge and creator economy hub with a strong focus on artificial intelligence and quantum technology.
He noted that Andhra Pradesh has abundant tech-driven youth and the government is formulating plans to train them in futuristic technologies with support from global technology firms.
"Our goal is to transform Andhra Pradesh into a knowledge hub by focusing on AI, quantum computing, data centres, drone cities and space cities. The youth will remain our biggest asset over the next 25 years, and we seek global partnerships to scale up the creator economy," said Naidu during his interactions at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in Delhi.
Naidu, who participated in the summit in the national capital, also held meetings with several global technology leaders and industrialists to explore collaborations in artificial intelligence, clean energy and innovation ecosystems.
He met Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, Autodesk AI Head Mike Haley, Aramco India Director Abdul Rehman AiThukair, LEGO Education Vice President Tom Hall, Aadhaar Founder and CTO Srikanth Nadhamuni, Khosla Ventures Managing Partner Vinod Khosla and others at the AP Pavilion.
The chief minister also held discussions with Saudi Aramco representatives on clean energy projects, including solar initiatives, and invited the company to expand operations in Andhra Pradesh, stating that the state is highly suitable for green energy production.
He sought support from NVIDIA Vice President Callista Redmond for establishing AI Living Labs and proposed partnerships through the Ratan Tata Innovation Hub to promote youth innovation, including collaborations with IIT Tirupati and Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Tirupati under the Andhra Pradesh Future Innovation and Research for Science and Technology (AP FIRST) initiative.
Naidu urged Autodesk leadership to support the development of Global Capability Centres in design engineering and requested the establishment of an Innovation Academy in Amaravati aligned with quantum technology, besides proposing AI and robotics learning labs in partnership with LEGO Education.
He also discussed AI-driven smart governance solutions with Quantela Inc Chairman Sridhar Gadhi, while World Bank Group Digital AI Regional Director Mahesh Uttamchandani met Naidu on the sidelines of the summit.
Following the meetings, Naidu visited various exhibition stalls at the summit, including those of NVIDIA, Tata, Intel and Microsoft, and reviewed AI applications across agriculture, healthcare and industry.
