New Delhi: Polling for the Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) elections began on Friday, with students voting for the four central panel posts and college representatives in a closely watched contest involving the ABVP, NSUI and the AISA-SFI alliance.

Voting for students attending day classes will continue until 1 pm, while polling in evening colleges will be held from 3 pm to 7:30 pm, officials said.

A total of 1,000 electronic voting machines (EVMs) have been deployed for the elections. Of these, 960 will be used for polling, while 40 have been kept in reserve, according to university officials.

Chief Election Officer Raj Kishore Sharma said 12 control rooms would remain operational during polling and technical experts would be available to address any malfunction.

"Once polling concludes, the EVMs will be securely transported by police to the Multipurpose Hall of the University Sports Stadium in North Campus. The machines will be opened at the time of counting on Saturday," Sharma said.

Vote counting is scheduled for Saturday.

Student welfare, campus facilities, hostel accommodation and safety have emerged as key issues in the DUSU election campaign, particularly following the collapse of a five-storey PG building in Satya Niketan earlier this month, which claimed the lives of seven people, including students.

The university has restricted vehicular movement on key stretches, including Chhatra Marg, Probyn Road and University Road, due to the election process.

The restrictions will remain in force on Friday and Saturday until the results are declared, according to a university advisory.

This report was published from a wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.