Kolkata: In a bid to boost urban voter turnout, the office of the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) is planning to set up polling booths within housing complexes and high-rises that have more than 600 residents.
The CEO has sought reports from district magistrates, who serve as district election officers (DEOs), to identify such complexes in their districts and submit details preferably by the end of this week, so that further action can be initiated.
A senior CEO office official said recent elections have shown that residents of multistoried buildings are often reluctant to step out of their premises to vote. “The average turnout in such complexes hovers around 50 per cent.
In metro cities like Delhi, the setting up of booths inside high-rises has increased voting by 10–15 per cent,” the official noted.
The CEO’s office has already received proposals from associations of some high-rises requesting polling facilities inside their premises.
Accordingly, DEOs have been asked to coordinate with public representatives and resident associations before submitting their reports. Apart from Kolkata, a large number of multistoried apartments have come up in adjoining districts such as South 24-Parganas, North 24-Parganas, Howrah, Hooghly, Nadia, and Siliguri, where the population in several complexes exceeds 1,000. In some Kolkata apartments, resident numbers go up to 2,000. The CEO’s office had sought such reports earlier as well but did not receive much response.
This time, the CEO has once again written to DEOs to ensure the needful is done.