ECI wants identification of booth with low voter turnout

BENGALURU: A team of officials from Election Commission of India (ECI) directed officials concerned of the State to identify polling booths with low voter turnout in both Assembly and Lok Sabha polls and also to find out the cause for low voter turnout in these booths.

Director of ECI Subhra Saxena and its secretary B.C. Patra, SVEEP director Santosh Ajmera and others were in the ECI team to observe the preparations for the ensuing Assembly polls. The team visited the State on February 7-9 and toured various divisions such as Kalaburagi, Mysuru, Bengaluru and held meetings with Deputy Commissioners.

The ECI team wanted officials concerned to initiate steps to increase voter turnout during the forthcoming Assembly polls in the State and also to increase facilities for the voters to come and vote in larger numbers than the previous polls.

The ECI team also wanted officials concerned to increase voter turnout in polls through creation of awareness on voting and wanted officials concerned to make use of technology to draw more voters to the polling booths. They wanted the officials concerned to draw the attention of young voters.

The ECI team inspected Electronic Voting Machines as part of their visits to the districts.

The ECI also held a meeting with the State Nodal Officer of Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) P.S. Vastrad. State Election Commissioner Manoj Kumar Meena and Additional Chief Election Commissioner Rajendra Cholan were with the ECI team to observe the poll preparations going on in the State.