1 2 Pandals are being set up, banners are going up, and announcements have gone out – the city's housing societies , often hosts to festive events and bazaars, have opened their community halls and public spaces to host the festival of democracy. In a bid to arrest voter apathy in the upcoming assembly polls, the Election Commission of India has planned to set up 126 polling booths at co-operative housing societies across the district. This is expected to make voting accessible, especially for senior citizens and persons with disabilities, and draw more voters, young and old, to booths.
Many societies are yet to get clear guidelines about the booths, but in some areas, preparations are underway and training has begun to facilitate the exercise. "It is a great initiative. It will help senior citizens and those who are bound by time due to other commitments ensure they vote.
At Celestial Co-Operative Housing Society in Ravet, officials have completed two rounds of inspection, a pandal has been set up and we have been promised security, besides assistance for residents to ensure they are not inconvenienced," said the society's chairperson Prajakta Rudrawar. She expects some restrictions on parking and vehicular movement on Nov 20, the voting day, but shrugged it off as a minor inconvenience. The exercise would be a first for assembly elections in the state.
During the Lok Sabha elections, only 150 housing societies across the state had polling booths. There would be over 1,000.
