Jaipur, Oct. 7 -- The Rajasthan State Election Commission on Tuesday revised the schedule for the first three phases of the panchayat elections following demands from leaders and organisations to change dates that coincided with the festive period. "Keeping in mind the religious beliefs and public sentiments regarding the festival of Dhanteras, the dates for the first, second and third phases of the panchayat elections are being postponed by one day," the commission's order stated. According to the revised schedule, first-phase voting for zila parishad and panchayat samiti members will be held on October 22. Nominations for panch and sarpanch posts will take place on October 23, followed by polling on October 24 and the deputy sarpanch election on October 25. In the second phase, voting for zila parishad and panchayat samiti members will take place on October 28. Nominations for panch and sarpanch posts will be held on October 29, followed by polling on October 30 and deputy sarpanch election on October 31. Third-phase voting for zila parishad and panchayat samiti members will be held on November 3. Nominations for panch and sarpanch posts will take place on November 4, followed by polling on November 5. Ward panchs will elect the deputy sarpanch through an indirect election on the morning of November 6. The order sets October 21, October 27 and November 2 as the departure dates for polling parties for the three phases, respectively. "The rest of the announced programme will remain unchanged," it stated. State election commissioner Rajeshwar Singh had acknowledged public concerns in a statement issued late Monday evening. "Dhanteras (November 6) is not a public holiday. This was not taken into account when we prepared the election calendar. On Dhanteras, after shopping in the market, puja is performed in the evening. Voting does not take much time," Singh said. "I am seeing that there is some reaction among the general public regarding voting on Dhanteras. Looking at the faith, devotion, festival and religious sentiments of the people, we are considering and thinking about how to correct it," he added. According to the commission's October 3 announcement, the elections cover 41 zila parishads, 457 panchayat samitis and 14,403 gram panchayats, with 4,03,07,308 eligible voters and 45,384 polling stations. Jaipur has the largest electorate, with 18,99,920 voters. The commission had specified that panch and sarpanch elections would use ballot papers, while voting for zila parishad and panchayat samiti members would be conducted using electronic voting machines....