India, Oct. 9 -- A total of 7,169 candidates were declared eligible to contest the student union elections across 348 colleges in Odisha after scrutiny of nomination papers on Friday.

As many as 8,325 nomination papers were filed for the student union polls in higher education institutions across the state.

Of these, 1,156 were rejected during scrutiny, while the remaining 7,169 nominations were declared valid.

The elections have witnessed considerable participation from students across the participating colleges, with candidates preparing to contest for various student union posts.

Meanwhile, a significant number of candidates have already secured victories without facing a contest.

At the college level, 1,620 candidates have been e...