Vijayawada: Government employees coming under essential services in Vijayawada feel chafed that many of them had to run from pillar to post to cast their postal ballots on Tuesday.
Election Commission of India (ECI) has provided them the facility of postal ballot, as they would be on election duties on May 13, when polling will take place in Andhra Pradesh for the assembly and Lok Sabha elections.
A large number of government staff turned up at the NTR district sub-collectorate office, Tummalapalli Kalakshetram and other places to exercise their franchise.
However, utter chaos prevailed at these places due to lack of help desks and mismanagement. Many employees went from one centre to another, while some decided not to use their postal ballot amid the chaos.
One among the staff Jayamma (name changed) said she had come to cast her vote at the sub-collectorate facilitation centre. A municipal corporation school teacher, she is in her mid-fifties and a diabetic patient.
She said, “I was part of around 150 employees given election training at PB Siddhartha College. We were told we could cast our votes there. However, only 50 postal ballots were provided on Monday, May 6, leaving nearly 100 employees. Today, I visited four facilitation centres including Loyola College, Indira Gandhi Municipal Corporation (IGMC) stadium and Tummalapalli Kalakshetram. Finally, I cast my vote at the facilitation centre set up at the sub-collectorate,” she explained.
Jayamma observed that employees could have avoided such difficulties had the government made proper arrangements.
Another employee Ganesh (name changed), serving as a flying squad member with the police department in Gannavaram, said, “Although I submitted Form 12 to cast my vote through postal ballot in Krishna district, my application has been rejected.”
Later, Ganesh, a resident of Vijayawada East constituency, could cast his vote through postal ballot at the sub-collectorate facilitation centre.
