Out of total 2, 20,787 nomination papers filed for various seats ahead of the three-tier panhayat polls, 2,07,181 were found valid after scrutiny, informed a statement of the State Election Commission (SEC).
The valid nominations include 1,46,662 for Ward Member seats, 31,086 for Sarpanch, 25,714 for Panchayat Samiti Member and 3,719 for Zilla Parishad Member seats.
The highest number of 15,283 nominations found valid in Baleswar district followed by 13,682 in Ganjam, 12,714 in Mayurbhanj, 12,622 in Cuttack, 10,212 in Jajpur and 10,058 in Puri district. While all other districts have figures less than 10,000, Jharsuguda stands at the bottom with 1,609.
As per the scheduled, candidates can withdraw their nominations on January 20 (Friday) and the final list of candidates would be published on Saturday.