Focus On Voter Awareness In Cooperative Housing Societies To Boost Urban Voting Percentage: Pune District Collector Dr. Suhas Divase

Reflecting on the successful efforts during the previous Lok Sabha elections, where voter awareness campaigns led to an increase in urban voter turnout, Dr. Divase stated that similar sustained efforts are needed for the upcoming elections to further boost voter participation.

He further mentioned that due to effective awareness campaigns under SVEEP, conducted at various levels across the district, there has been a significant response to voter registration. As a result, the district’s voter count has reached 8.647 million, making Pune the district with the highest voter count in the state.

As in the Lok Sabha elections, large housing societies have also been designated as polling stations this time. Additionally, in restructuring polling stations and establishing new ones, the administration has ensured that each station accommodates around 1,200 voters to avoid overcrowding. Moreover, efforts are being made to ensure that family members are listed at the same polling station and that voters are registered at the closest station.

Voter registration will continue for 10 days after the nomination process begins, and cooperative housing societies should inform their members about this. Efforts should be made to ensure that eligible residents, including new tenants and recently married women, complete Form 6 for voter registration.

During the Lok Sabha elections, the “Know Your Polling Station” initiative was implemented to inform voters about their designated polling stations. This initiative will now be widely promoted at polling station levels, within housing societies, and across other venues. Housing societies should assist their members in locating their names on the voter list and provide polling station details. District and city cooperative registrars, along with their officers, staff, and auditors on the panel, have been instructed to coordinate these efforts with the housing societies.

Various initiatives were launched in constituencies that saw lower voter turnout during the Lok Sabha elections to encourage greater participation. Group Development Officers and Panchayat Samitis, along with other departments, will be involved in these voter awareness campaigns. Through students, pledge forms will be collected from their parents, affirming their intent to vote.

The unique campaign “Grandparents, Let’s Go Vote!” targeting voters above 80 years old received a positive response during the Lok Sabha elections. This initiative will be further enhanced, and housing societies will be encouraged to provide details of elderly voters to arrange wheelchair facilities as needed. Plans are also being made to establish polling stations in old-age homes.

Meetings will be held with industrial establishments to encourage their workers to vote. Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporations have been requested to involve women’s self-help groups in promoting voter awareness. Several election officers, SVEEP nodal officers from assembly constituencies, and representatives from various departments were present at the meeting.